When Sakura Kissed the Teacher
by Otachii
Summary: It's so simple; saying what you mean, how you feel. So why did he have to make it so hard? Why did he have to play these games? KakaSaku KibaSaku
1. Sake Kisses vs Doggy Licks

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any characters in this story taken from the anime/manga Naruto. All characters taken from said anime/manga belong to their original creator Masashi Kishimoto. The script for the second scene belongs to the original creator of the well-known KakaSaku doujin informally named 'Three Kisses' whose identity regrettably eludes me; it was the original inspiration for this fic and I in no way claim ownership to the script of the doujin itself but do however claim creative ownership to my adaption of it.

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**Chapter One**

**Sake Kisses vs. Doggy Licks**

_I shiver when I hear your name, think about you but it's not the same._

_I won't be satisfied 'til I'm under your skin._

_Shiver_ by Maroon 5

_Sakura sighed heavily as she tilted her head back, allowing her jade green eyes to take in the sight of the leaves upon the branches of the tree she sat under fluttering in the cool breeze that moved through the brisk night air. It was the same breeze that made strands of her bubblegum pink hair dance around her heart-shaped face and erupted goose bumps upon the exposed flesh of her arms and legs. The mission to transport a secret scroll from Konoha to Suna had been a complete success and though they had had little trouble along the way and were currently headed back to the hidden leaf village Kakashi, their team's ever-vigilant leader, had insisted that precaution still be taken, having the team sleep in shifts so that one would always be awake to keep look-out._

_Naruto had of course taken the first shift. Always the determined loud-mouth he had exclaimed, much to the annoyance of Sakura, the disinterest of Kakashi and the indifference of Sasuke, that it was his duty as the future Hokage of Konohagakure to jump at any and every opportunity to assist his fellow shinobi and be a true hero. Naruto; _'What a rambunctious idiot.'_ Sakura thought with an affectionate smile as she looked to the blond who snored audibly through his peaceful slumber. Green irises would flick to the other boy who had long since been her teammate and friend; Sasuke, he had been the one to take second shift and was the face that, much to her liking, Sakura got to see looming over her as she was awoke for her shift._

_It had been about a year since his return to Konoha after having exacting his revenge upon his brother and forced to see reason and give up on his revenge against his birth village. Sakura stared longingly at the young Uchiha, the final Uchiha, as he slept soundly, his chest rising and falling with his every breath. It was funny in a sort of bittersweet way; they had finally brought him back and yet the boy seemed farther away from Sakura then ever. But what had she expected? Had she honestly thought that he would return with a carefree smile on his face, ready to let go of his past and welcome Sakura into his heart with open arms? _'I did.'_ And she had, foolish as it was, she had._

_But Sasuke was as cold and distant as ever and once again Sakura's heart was handed back to her in pieces._

_Again Sakura sighed as she leaned her back more fully against the tree. Her eyes drooped, she was tired and she knew her shift was almost over as the moon sunk lower in the starry sky above. Sunrise was an hour away, it was Kakashi's turn, but where the hell was he? Sakura faintly remembered the older man saying something about scouting the area before she had fallen asleep but when she had woke up to take her shift Kakashi still wasn't back. Sasuke hadn't seemed worried about it, so Sakura had thought nothing of it. But now she was anxious to get a bit more sleep before they continued their journey back to the village so the fact that Kakashi was no where to be seen concerned her._

**'That lazy closet pervert!'**_Inner Sakura fumed. _**'Where the hell is he?'**_ That was exactly what Sakura wanted to know._

_With a heavy groan, Sakura would rise to her feet, smoothing out her skirt over her shorts as a chill ran down her spine. It was a particularly cool night, the fire having died out hours ago, and she wanted nothing more then to crawl into her sleeping bag and once again envelope herself in it's warmth. But first she had to find that no-good team leader of hers. _**'He better be hurt or dead because if he aint he's gonna be!'**'Damn right.'_ Sakura agreed as she tilted her head to one side and then the other, an audible crack breaking through the songs of many crickets that hid in the grass around her feet._

_When focused it didn't take long for Sakura to pin-point Kakashi's chakra, he was close and Sakura was thankful because her legs ached with tired strain as they carried her through the forest. Not long after she had started walking did Sakura's finely tuned ears pick up on the sounds of running water trickling over rocks and she knew before she saw that Kakashi was by the river. Giving a little boost to her pride, Sakura was pleased to discover that she was right, though her pleasure quickly diminished and was replaced with raging annoyance as Sakura's eyes fell upon Kakashi._

_The older man was currently perched at the top of a small setting of large rocks that acted as a mini-waterfall for the river, sprawled out with his back lounged against a rock that stuck up higher then all the rest and asleep. But the fact that he was asleep wasn't what annoyed Sakura; it was that lying beside him upon the rock he sat on near his limp hand was an empty bottle of sake. _

_"He came out here to get drunk." She whispered into the night. _**'That no good bastard!'**

_But that wasn't at all like Kakashi. Maybe this was a trap, perhaps that was and imposter and the real Kakashi had been taken prisoner and was being held captive at that very moment. But one look at that orange book clutched so possessively to his chest and Sakura knew that this was indeed the real Hatake Kakashi._

_Grumbling with irritation as she rolled her eyes and kicked a small pebble into the shallow river as if that would help quench her thirst for vengeful violence, Sakura would move toward the gathering of rocks and climb up, taking caution because some were slippery due to the water; the last thing she needed was to fall into the river. She'd stand over Kakashi, her hands upon the swell of her hips in a moralistic fashion as she glared down heatedly at the older man. This was no way for a shinobi of the great Konohagakure to act, especially a legendary one such as Hatake Kakashi, the great Copy-nin._

_A swift kick was offered to the side of his right leg. "Get up you lazy bum." She called down to him but Kakashi only grunted and turned his head and continued to sleep undisturbed. "C'mon Kakashi-sensei, it's your shift!" She complained harshly as she offered another, harder kick to his leg but still Kakashi did not stir. A frustrated sigh would leave her lips as Sakura crossed her arms over her diminutive chest and shook her head lightly as she regarded the passed out man before her. _

"_Great Copy-nin my ass." She grumbled bitterly._

_To think she had once idolized him. _**'What a joke!'**_ Indeed. But she had to admit, he looked so at peace when he was asleep, it was rather cute. Cute... Sakura could never say with certainty whether Kakashi was attractive or not. Of course she didn't think it was possible for her to feel any sort of attraction to the infuriatingly easy-going older man, but still it would be nice to know whether or not this man whom she had known through most of her childhood was anything special to look at._

_Eyes were drawn from his one bare lidded eye down to the blue mask that covered most of his face. She had known him for almost four years and not once had she seen his face. _**'Now's your chance, go for it!' **'But it's not right; I mean if he wanted anyone to see his face then he wouldn't wear the mask, right? What if he wakes up and gets mad at me?' **'The man's completely trashed, there's no way he's gonna wake up, just do it!' **'I really shouldn't...' **'Do it!'**

_"Okay." She whispered aloud._

_Biting softly at her lower lip Sakura would bend her knees to crouch down beside the older man, her hand carefully rising and slowly making for his face. She chewed desperately at her lower lip, her hand trembling as it neared his face, her eyes widening in anticipation and anxiety as she watched his exposed eyes for any hint of him waking up. But he remained in a serene state of slumber, blissfully unaware of what was about to happen. Her ears were pounding with her erratic heartbeat as Sakura's fingers gingerly tucked into the top of Kakashi's mask and carefully began to draw it down. The sounds of the forest that surrounded them and the river they sat on completely died, the scenery fell away until all that was left in the world was Sakura and Kakashi. Finally she would get to see his face._

_"Finally." She murmured excitedly as she pulled his mask down to reveal a sharp nose._

_But the scenery and the sounds of the forest came rushing back to Sakura as in one swift motion Kakashi shot up, tearing a cry from Sakura's lips as she fell backward and landed right in the river. Freezing water wrapped around her, covering her entire body save the top half of her neck as Sakura lay upon the river's floor, held up only by her elbows. It was cold, so cold that it hurt and forced another cry from Sakura as she tried to push herself onto her feet, only to go plopping back down into the water as her feet slipped on the slippery rocks upon the riverbed beneath her._

_----------------------------------------------------_

_Her teeth chattered uncontrollably as Sakura gripped tighter at the blanket that lay wrapped around her and glared harshly at her former sensei who was currently hanging up the remainder of her soaked clothes upon a tree branch for her. It was a good thing she had packed herself something extra to wear, sure it was just a plain white sleeveless dress that reached her knees, but at least it was something. Next to her dripping uniform Kakashi also hung his own vest, pants, sweater and hitai-ite which he had also gotten wet when he had hoisted Sakura out of the river but only after he had dropped her three times. Lucky for him he had packed himself an extra sweater and a pair of slacks so unlike poor Sakura who shivered uncontrollably in her flimsy little gown even under the blanket she clutched around her he was quite warm and comfortable._

_Kakashi was wobbly on his feet and looked like he would fall from the high tree branch at any moment and, feeling very bitter about the whole situation, Sakura found herself hoping, even praying that he would. _**'That no good, lazy, perverted, unprofessional...' **'Son of a bitch.'_ Sakura finished for her inner self. _**'Yeah, that's it!'**

_"Don't look at me like that Sakura." Kakashi said softly as he hopped from the tree branch and landed in front of her on unsteady feet but much to Sakura's dismay he did not fall over. "It's not my fault you fell in the river."_

_"I-i-is s-so!" Sakura spat venomously in a hushed and stuttering tone, not wanting to wake up Sasuke or Naruto who slept just a few feet away from the tree Sakura was perched under. "I-if y-y-you h-hadn't b-been out there g-getting d-drunk I w-w-w-wouldn't have h-had to come l-l-looking for y-you."_

_"I wasn't getting drunk." Kakashi defended indifferently with a casual shrug. "I was just having a drink and thinking over the mission, is that a crime?" He asked and Sakura glared at him. He was clearly drunk. He wasn't slurring his words but that was only because he was talking so slowly. "Besides, you wouldn't have fallen into the river if you hadn't been trying to take off my mask; it was bad karma that got you all wet and cold." Sakura's cheeks flared red with frustration and embarrassment; there was no way she was losing this fight._

_"Y-yeah w-well y-you're... y-you're..." Damn it, she couldn't think of anything. "You're j-just a d-dirty old man w-who r-reads dirty old b-books!" She shot at him in a harsh whisper. _

_True that had absolutely nothing to do with this fight and by all accounts attacking Kakashi's character was completely unfair but the older man seemed by all accounts unfazed by Sakura's comment and only stared down at her in that casually indifferent way of his. It infuriated Sakura to no end, so much so that she felt the urge to gather her chakra into her fists and give him the beating of a lifetime. But she resisted, he was still her captain and her sempai and she didn't want to disturb Sasuke or Naruto. So instead of beating her former sensei to a bloody pulp, Sakura sulked silently and hung her head, ignoring Kakashi as he continued to stare down at her and even when he crouched down in front of her._

_"Sakura..." He called to her softly but Sakura refused to look at him. It was only when she felt his index finger push lightly against her lips as he once again cooed her name quietly that Sakura looked back up to him, her eyes wide, shining with question. _

_He was close, so close that she could feel his breath moving past the fabric of his mask and blowing against her face. It shouldn't have made her stomach jump up to crash into her heart with a harsh but somehow pleasant pang, something that had only ever happened to her whenever Sasuke was near her, after all, this was Kakashi. But having him so close made her stomach flutter anxiously and though her body tingled with the urge to move away, she couldn't bring herself to move. _

_"Do you know the three levels of kisses?" He asked her in that same hushed tone. It was an odd question, one that made her heart ache with longing and her mind scream with foreboding, one that silenced even the tenacious inner Sakura and left both her and the real Sakura staring up into the older silver-haired man's mismatched eyes with wondrous green orbs. She couldn't bring herself to form words, she didn't know what to say, she didn't know what he meant. So she simply shook her head and he smiled beneath his mask. "Then I'll show you..._

_"The first is the Naruto kiss." He went on as he leaned up to offer a soft, sweet kiss to Sakura's forehead. Sakura couldn't help but giggle quietly. Kakashi sure was acting strange, it was probably all the sake in his system. Sakura would definitely have to tell Naruto and Sasuke about this, it'd be amusing to see them overreact and blow the whole thing completely out of proportion, or at least Naruto would, Sasuke probably wouldn't care. _

_Sakura's thoughts were quite suddenly interrupted as she felt the warmth of Kakashi's hand encompass one of her cheeks and her eyes shifted to look to his hand before locking once again with his own. He was staring at her so strangely; his mismatched eyes so dazed as if he wasn't really there or was deep in his own thoughts. It made Sakura's stomach jump up against her heart once again._

_"The second is the Sasuke kiss." He continued as he stared down at her, still cupping her cheek gently. "Now close your eyes..." The rational part of her mind screamed at her not to do it, inner Sakura still sat in stunned silence and as for the real Sakura, her heart began to race with the same anticipation she had felt when she had almost removed Kakashi's mask. In the end, despite the warnings of her mind, Sakura closed her eyes._

_For a moment she sat there, eyes closed and ears open to the gentle song of the crickets and the steady __**whoosh**__ of the cool breeze around her. She was no longer shivering, the closeness of Kakashi's body offering her new found warmth. And then she felt the gentle brush of fabric on her lips. She was confused for a moment, but as she felt ample lips push beneath the fabric she knew that Kakashi was kissing her. Her heart raced in such a way that left Sakura breathless and though the kiss was brief the side-effects lingered well on after Kakashi's cloth-covered mouth parted from her own. _

_Her eyes fluttered open as her head bowed, her eyes unable to look up at Kakashi's which bore into her as heat rose in her body and turned her cheeks a faint pink color. He had kissed her, Kakashi had kissed her and though Sakura knew she should have been worried or offended she was neither. All she could feel was her heart racing in her chest and her lips tingling with the lingering warmth of Kakashi's lips. This was so wrong. But then why wasn't she screaming and lashing out at him with her fists? Why was she just continuing to sit there like a naive little girl curious to see what her sensei would do next? '_Because that's what I am.'

_"And then..." She heard Kakashi murmur, drawing her eyes up to his face as his free hand reached up and his fingers curled into his mask to draw it down. "The highest level..." He went on as he tucked his mask beneath his chin to expose his face, causing Sakura's eyes to widen in shock. _

_Kakashi's face was perhaps the most handsome Sakura had ever laid eyes upon; with a strong and defined jaw line, a handsomely pointed nose and two full lips that smiled so coyly at her as he spoke. There was not a flaw in sight save the long scar that ran down from his left eye onto his cheek which for some reason Sakura found appealing and felt herself desiring to caress. Sakura couldn't help but wonder why on earth the older man would hide his face from view. _

_But before she could utter such a sentence or even a soft gasp of surprise, Kakashi's hold upon the side of her face tightened and he drew her forward as he pressed against her and before Sakura even knew what was happening his lips were against her own. But this kiss was not like the _"Sasuke kiss"_, it was much different; not only were Kakashi's lips now bare, allowing Sakura to feel the full potential of their warmth, but the kiss was so heated and passionate that Sakura couldn't react to it's intensity, she could only sit there, her eyes wide as Kakashi pushed further against her, trapping her against the tree behind her and holding her face in place with his hands surrounding her cheeks. Something warm and wet pushed against her lips and Sakura gasped with the realization that it was Kakashi's tongue. This seemed to please Kakashi because he grunted into the kiss as his tongue invaded her mouth and found her own, sliding and rubbing against it._

_His tongue tasted of sake and Sakura groaned with distaste into the kiss, she hated the taste of sake. Her hands reached up, fists clinging to the fabric of his shirt as she tried to push him away, continuing to moan and grunt her objections into the kiss as Kakashi's tongue pushed against her own, rubbing and caressing as if coaxing her to respond. Her protest only fueled Kakashi's passion and his hand would slip off her cheek to the back of her head, fingers tangling into her short pink locks and pushing her into the kiss to deepen it as his other arm wrapped around her and pressed against her lower back to push her body flush between his spread knees._

_She could feel him, every part of him; his chest, his stomach and especially his groin which he seemed most eager to introduce Sakura to as with every struggled shift of her body, which in the end only served to make her small frame rub against his larger one, Kakashi would groan softly into the kiss and push his slight bulge tighter against Sakura stomach. It was a foreign grinding motion that made Sakura shiver and whimper as it both scared her and brought her senses to new extremes of excitement. _

_Sakura felt herself growing weak, felt her protests becoming quieter until their were none at all and her pushing against his chest weaken until she was merely holding onto his shirt with her fists and much to her shock and Kakashi's delight she was soon responding to the movements of his tongue and the grinding of his hips in a timid and unskilled manner. This was so wrong. Her mind was racing and her heart was pounding but her body felt so warm in his arms and though Sakura knew she should have continued to fight him she just couldn't. This was Kakashi, her former sensei and her current sempai, a man fourteen years her senior and she was kissing him, allowing his tongue to ravish her mouth in a way that no man had ever tried, letting his body touch hers in a way she had never dreamed and despite the scandal of it all she liked it; the fact that it was so wrong only making her body feel hotter._

_She wasn't sure how long their lips were locked and their tongues were intertwined, but soon Kakashi was pulling back, leaving a trail of saliva that connected their tongues as if to remind Sakura of their fit of passion as her eyes drifted open to stare up at the older man. Her breathing was heavy, her body was trembling, but it was not from the cold, quite the contrary, it was from the heat, that heat that Kakashi's lips and tongue left inside her mouth along with the bitter taste of sake and the fire his body against hers had caused within her belly._

_He licked his lips and began to push his mask back over his face. "The Kakashi kiss." He finished but Sakura could barely hear him over the sound of her heart which pounded in her ears. "But if you use this kiss on someone that isn't me..." He went on as he stared down at her, his mask now returned over his face but the image of its beauty forever locked in Sakura's mind. "I'm going to have to punish you." He smiled there, his eyes crinkling in that way of his as he pushed back onto his feet and moved away from her, leaving Sakura to stare after him as if in a daze._

"Heeelloooo, Earth to Sakura!" Ino shouted as she shoved the young rosette-haired woman who shook her head as she was snapped out of her thoughts. Jade eyes fell upon Ino, and Sakura frowned softly.

"What."

"Answer the question." Ino demanded agitatedly.

"What question?" Sakura inquired in confusion and Ino sighed with aggravation as she regarded her old time friend and rival.

"Who was your first kiss?"

"Oh..." Sakura looked away there, focusing all her attention on gathering up the medical files she had been looking over back into their correct folders.

Being head of Konoha's hospital was no easy task, but Sakura took pride in her work and liked to think she did it well. It was only her first year running the hospital but much to Sakura's delight many would claim that the young women had made quite a few improvements while in her state of power. It was the end of the day and Ino had dropped by as she usually did, to groan and complain about how Sakura worked too much as she waited impatiently for the young woman to finish up whatever work she happened to be doing. Sakura was always doing something and it agitated Ino.

"So..." Ino pressed and Sakura shrugged.

"I don't remember..." Sakura offered simply. "I think it was Naruto."

Ino scoffed. "I'm not talking sweet, childish tap kisses Sakura; I'm talking your first full-blown passionate kiss. Full of heated want and unspoken but clearly indicated desire. The first kiss that made your knees go weak and took your breath away!" Ino sighed dramatically as she leaned against Sakura's desk, throwing her head back to press the back of her hand against her forehead for theatrical affect.

Sakura couldn't help but blush slightly as she looked toward her friend. There was no way she was telling Ino about that night in the forest with Kakashi; she'd blow it completely out of proportion and it would be the hottest gossip in Konoha so fast that Sakura's head would spin. She loved the other female, but there was no denying that Ino had a big mouth ready to spew any and all secrets she heard to the world.

"I've never had one like that." Sakura lied as she finished stacking the folders neatly on the desk.

She looked up to find Ino gaping at her, her blue eyes wide and her mouth hanging open in what was clearly a fit of shock and disbelief. Sakura merely rolled her eyes as she removed her white hospital coat to reveal her uniform, which hadn't changed much over the years, beneath it. Ino could be so overdramatic.

"Haruno Sakura!" Ino suddenly gasped and once again Sakura rolled her eyes as she flicked off the light of her office and headed out. Ino was quick to follow, looming behind Sakura as she locked her office door. "Do you mean to tell me that you, at the age of twenty-one, have never had a toe-curling kiss?" Ino spat the words as if they tasted fowl on her lips.

"There's more to life then dating Ino, I have priorities and dating the silly boys around Konoha is not one of them." Sakura explained passively as she turned from her office door, slipping the key into one of the pockets of her skirt.

"Priorities, please." Ino scoffed as she followed Sakura down the dimly lit hallways of the hospital. "No wonder you're always so tightly wound and bitchy, you need to get laid Sakura!" Ino would exclaim bluntly.

Sakura's face turned a bright shade of red as her lips parted in awe, her face twisted in disgust as she looked to her long-time friend. "I am not tightly wound. I'm just..." The young woman gave pause, searching for her words. "Professional."

Ino smirked. "Professionally bitchy." The blonde would correct making Sakura huff.

"Whatever, this discussion is over." Sakura gave a dismissive wave of her hand.

"Oh no it's not!" Ino shot, hurrying down the stairs after Sakura, refusing to be silenced. '_What a surprise.'_ "It's not healthy to be so wrapped up in work all the time Forehead; you're bound to have a nervous breakdown or something."

"Oh please." Sakura rolled her eyes and sighed exasperatedly as they reached the first floor and past the main desk. Sakura offered a friendly little wave to the plump nurse behind it who smiled and nodded before Sakura's attention turned back to Ino. "Why do you suddenly care so much about my love life Ino-Pig?"

"Because, despite popular belief, I care about you and your well-being Sakura." Ino offered sincerely as both women exited the hospital. Sakura couldn't help but smile, Ino did have her moments of utter sweetness. "Besides, I'm sick of seeing you so miserable on those rare occasions you come out with Chouji and me. It's a serious mood-killer and can't be good for _our _relationship." Sakura's smile fell to a frown, well that moment certainly ended quickly.

'_**Slug the invasive bitch!' **_Inner Sakura offered animatedly but Sakura just sighed. Though Ino worked in questionable ways she knew the blonde was only trying to help. It was true, even Sakura could see that she worked far too hard for her own good. But she honestly didn't think she was ready to start dating, not when she was still holding out for...

"You have to forget about him." Ino's soft voice broke through Sakura's thoughts and the young woman looked to her friend with question. "I know that look Sakura, I know Sasuke was your first love but you know as well as anybody that he can't give you what you need."

"Oh right." Sakura gave off a strained laugh and nodded, looking away from Ino's piercing gaze.

What Ino didn't know was that Sakura had come to previously stated realization years before and by now she was well over Sasuke. Of course she still cared for the man and sincerely hoped that he could one day find a girl that could break through that hard shell he set up around himself and give him the family he so longed for, but any feelings of love she had harbored for the young man had died long ago. What Ino didn't know, what Sakura could never muster up the courage to tell her, is that the final Uchiha was not the man Sakura was holding out for so desperately, the man that Sakura was saving herself for was none other then her one-time mentor Hatake Kakashi. After all, in giving the older man her first kiss, as unwilling as it may have been initially, Sakura had always held onto the thought, childish as it was, that she had promised herself to the much older man.

It was silly really, Sakura knew it was because Kakashi never showed any signs that he even remembered the exchange of heated kisses between them and why would he? He was so drunk that night it was doubtful that the man had any idea what he was doing when he drew down his mask and gave Sakura her first and only toe-curling kiss. It seemed more like a dream now, so unreal that Sakura often had to stop and wonder if maybe she really had just dreamed it all. Yet somehow she couldn't let go of the hope that someday Kakashi would look upon her with the same dazed eyes he had gazed upon her with that night and tell her that it was time to make her his once and for all. It would be beautiful, perfect, Sakura knew it would and so she held on, held out for that fateful day when Kakashi would scoop her up into his arms and descend his lips upon hers in one of his expert kisses as his hands roamed her body which pressed so tightly with his as they joined and became one...

"Sakura look out!"

So wrapped up in her… admittedly rather naughty daydreams, Sakura did not notice the small black cat until it ran through her legs, making her stumble a bit backward and by the time she looked up to see the large white dog that was bounding toward her it was too late. The beast collided with Sakura and with a squeal the young pink-haired woman was sent toppling gracelessly to the ground, imprints of paw prints tracked up her skirt and chest as the enormous dog ran right over her and disappeared around a corner, chasing the cat.

Dazed by the impact, Sakura lay sprawled out on the street, staring up wide-eyed at the starry sky above before the vision of the distant flaming orbs was blocked out as a face loomed over hers, fixed into an expression of concern. Sakura stared at the face, that face, she knew that face; Kiba.

"Shit, Sakura-chan, are you alright?" The young man asked as he crouched down beside Sakura, sliding his arm behind her neck to guide her head up off the ground forcing her spine to curl as he cradled her back against his thigh, his knee curled to rest behind her as his arm lay draped over her shoulders.

"Don't worry about her Kiba." Ino offered as she sat kneeling beside the worried man and peering at Sakura over his shoulder. "All the grease in her hair absorbed the impact so there's probably no brain damage, at least none that wasn't there before." Kiba looked to Ino with a frown as the young blonde woman was grinning from ear to ear, clearly amused by the whole thing.

"Go roll in the mud with the rest of your family Ino-pig." Sakura offered; her tone slow and her eyes still a bit dazed.

Ino only grinned wider. "See she's fine; just get her on her feet." Kiba nodded, but instead of hoisting Sakura to her feet he slid his free arm under her knees and rose, carrying her upward in a bridal fashion, still cradling her against his chest though his arm that had been around her shoulders shifted to the middle of her back to help her sit up in his arms.

"Sorry about Akamaru, he really can't stand that cat. I swear the damn thing just likes to taunt him and get a rise out of him but he's too stubborn to listen to me." Kiba offered apologetically with an unsure little smile but Sakura only shook her head, rubbing her palm over the back of it.

"Its fine, I'm okay." Sakura waved her hand nonchalantly before unconsciously wrapping her arms around Kiba's neck as he smiled at her. Ino was still grinning like a Cheshire cat, having stepped away from the two to stand on the sidelines and just watch. "But seriously Kiba-san, you should put that damn dog on a leash." Sakura offered sternly.

Kiba laughed uneasily. "Yeah, my sister says I give him too much freedom but I just can't bear to see the poor guy confined like that you know?" Usually Kiba would have gone off on anyone who referred to Akamaru as "_that damn dog"_ but for whatever reason he let the comment slide right off his shoulders.

"Mm... yeah I suppose. But it could be just until he settles things with that cat he was chasing." Sakura's eyes widened as she turned her head to look toward the corner. "He won't hurt it will he?"

"No way!" Kiba laughed and offered Sakura a large reassuring grin as she shifted her eyes back to him. "He'll just terrorize it a bit, show it whose boss."

Sakura bit her lower lip and nodded, her eyes locked with Kiba's for a long moment, a rather awkward silence, at least awkward for Sakura as Kiba didn't seem to mind in the slightest, stretching between them. Her eyes strayed from Kiba's, tilting a bit to run down the length of his body to the ground as Sakura seemed to only just then realize that Kiba had swept her up off her feet.

"Kiba-san, you can put me down now, I'm okay." She said softly as her jade eyes met his once more to find that Kiba's cheeks had turned a faint red.

"Oh right, of course." An awkward laugh followed as he crouched and bent to return Sakura to her feet carefully though he did not immediately relinquish his hold on her. Slowly, so slowly that the gentleness of the movement made Sakura shiver slightly, Kiba's hand caressed down her spine and shifted onto her hip to turn her to face him.

Sakura looked up to the young man with question in her eyes as his thumb brushed against her right cheek. "You've got a paw print on your face." He'd explain softly and Sakura would frown, reaching up to brush Kiba's thumb away as she rubbed her cheek vigorously. He shook his head, that signature grin spreading across his cheeks. "It's still there." Sakura frowned a bit deeper and rubbed a bit harder to turn her cheek a dim red. "Still there." He laughed and Sakura gave him a haughty little glare.

"I got it." Kiba offered with a light chuckle as he reached up and grasped Sakura's wrist, drawing her hand down to her side.

Sakura's eyebrows would arch, eyes widening slightly as she found Kiba leaning in until she could feel his warm breath on the side of her face. It smelled like brisk cinnamon, which for some reason Sakura found very odd; since Kiba was so dog-like she had always assumed his breath would be just as musty and fowl as ones. In fact, Sakura had never noticed before but Kiba no longer smelled distinctly dog-like as he had when they were in school together. Though she could pick up the faint smell of Akamaru on him it was mixed with an odd sort of musk that balanced it into a scent that Sakura not only found pleasant but rather appealing.

Her eyes shifted to the side, watching all the while as Kiba drew closer to her cheek and though Sakura was sure time was still running as it always did, she could swear that everything was moving at the speed of light around them; Just a blur that encircled them while her and Kiba were stuck in slow motion. It was strange, something quite unlike anything she had ever experienced before and for the first time in a long time, since that time that seemed so long ago when she had pined after Sasuke and that night Kakashi had given her her first kiss, Sakura felt butterflies erupt in her stomach.

It was blissful, so much so that when Kiba's tongue slipped from his lips to slide over her cheek, an action that normally would have disgusted her enough to beat the dog of a man senseless, Sakura was completely unfazed by it. In fact it brought a quiet giggle from her own lips, a sound that seemed to please Kiba for again his tongue slipped over her cheek before his hand came up to gently rub his warm saliva, cooled by the air, into Sakura's cheek to remove the dirt-formed paw print.

"There, all gone." He'd reveal with one of his broad little grins, causing the butterflies in Sakura's stomach to explode one after the other in a rushing flurry of tingling warmth as she returned his smile with a soft one of her own.

"Thank you." Sakura said softly and for the longest moment the two simply stood there, Kiba's hand still pressed lightly into Sakura's cheek, his other still grasping her wrist to gently hold it at her side. But the moment ended as the echoing sound of Ino clearing her throat broke Sakura out of her trance-like state.

Sakura shook her head, Kiba's having turned so that his deep brown eyes could find Ino and trap her in a hard stare that only grew harder when Sakura pulled her wrist from Kiba's grasp and stepped away from him. _'What was that?'_ Sakura thought to herself as she ran her fingers down through her hair along the sides of her face, trying to hide how flustered she was but not doing too good of a job. _**'Y'know... Kiba's pretty sexy under the right light.' **_Inner Sakura suddenly chimed in, flustering Sakura even further. _'Shut up you!'_

"Well I better get going." Kiba suddenly said, drawing Sakura's eyes toward him, the jade pools swimming with a modest bit of disappointment but judging by the way Ino was staring at Sakura with that huge all-knowing smile of hers it was not modest enough. "I gotta catch up to Akamaru before he tramples all over every pretty girl in the village." Kiba grinned as Sakura's cheeks turned and intense shade of red.

"He didn't trample me." Ino offered with a slight frown as Kiba looked to her with disinterest.

"Yeah I know." Ino's frown deepened as she huffed but Kiba didn't even seem to notice as once again he looked Sakura's way and smiled. "Later Sakura-chan." That said, he was off and running down the street, his nose up in the air to sniff out Akamaru's scent as he turned the corner the dog had just moments earlier.

Sakura stood there, nibbling at her lower lip as she watched the corner Kiba had turned on for a long moment. She had known Kiba a long time, but it was only recently she had found his status in her life switching from a one-time fellow classmate who became her fellow shinobi to an actual friend. It was around the time of the jounin exams where the remaining members of the rookie nine had made their passage into jounin territory when the three teams had merged into one large group of friends. Whenever they could take time from their busy lives they would all head to the bar to crowd around a table and tell stories and laugh, of course it had been quite a while since Sakura had actually attended one of those little get-togethers but even so somehow Kiba and she had gotten rather close.

He was always coming to the hospital, whether it was to bring in one of his poor students, all of which had had countless head injuries over the span of being under Kiba's guidance due to his recklessness, or it was he himself who needed medical attention and for some reason Kiba often needed medical attention. He was always getting deep gashes that needed healing in places he couldn't reach himself with a needle and nylon thread, usually along his back, and would always come to Sakura to do it. He claimed it was because Sakura was the greatest medic around and he would sit in the hospital for hours with such minor injuries, refusing to let anyone touch him until Sakura came to take a look at his wound. Sakura had never found it strange or suspicious, mostly she just found it annoying though she had to admit that she enjoyed the talks she and Kiba had while she was treating his wounds.

"Haruno Sakura!" Ino suddenly exclaimed, breaking Sakura from her thoughts with a jolt as she'd turn to gaze at the blonde woman who was still grinning from ear to ear. "Why didn't you ever tell me you had a thing for Kiba?"

"What?" Once again Sakura's face was beet-red and she was nervously dragging her fingers through her hair along the sides of her face. "I-I don't know what you're talking about." She'd continue defensively as she turned from Ino and hurried on her way down the street.

"Oh please!" Ino laughed, easily catching up to a very flustered Sakura who hung her head low and continued to run her fingers anxiously through her hair. "It's so obvious that you like him, just about as clearly as it is that he's itching to get his hands on you." Ino smirked as Sakura looked up at her, jade eyes wide.

"You really think so?"

Ino scoffed. "I know so Sakura, if there's one thing the great and beautiful Yamanaka Ino knows it's the way of the heart." Sakura rolled her eyes at Ino's self-given title. "And let me tell you something Sakura, that boy's got it bad for you."

Sakura couldn't help but smile softly as she bowed her head once more. So Kiba really did like her according to Ino. Though the blonde was a bit eccentric and dramatic Sakura always trusted her when it came to things like this.

It had been a long time since anyone had liked Sakura, at least to her knowledge, the only boy to ever have a serious crush on her was Naruto and that had dwindled long ago. Sakura had eventually grown to care very deeply for Naruto but it was more a feeling she would have for an annoying little brother. Then there had been Sasuke who, though never willing to express anything but contempt toward Sakura or anyone else that looked his way, Sakura had declared ever-lasting love to. But of course those feelings had dimmed to that which a girl would have for her detached older brother and for the longest time Sakura had plastered a wall around her heart and had made herself incapable of feeling much more then friendship for any of the men around her.

But now there was Kiba, a man who not only seemed to like her very much but who Sakura felt herself growing very fond of. It made Sakura think that perhaps it was time to open her heart up to someone and it seemed Ino agreed. But then the memory of that night, which seemed like a lifetime ago now, filled her mind and reluctance gripped Sakura heart.

"_But if you use this kiss on someone that isn't me, I'm going to have to punish you." _

Sakura shook her head vigorously; she couldn't let the memory of that night plague her and effect every romantic decision she made. It had meant nothing and though it pained her to think that her first kiss was meaningless that was just how it was. Kakashi had been drunk, he hadn't known what he was doing and it was foolish of her to dwell on it. She and Kakashi would never be together, it just wasn't feasible, it just wasn't possible, especially now that he was…

"It's settled then." Ino's voice racked Sakura from her thoughts and she would turn her head to find the blonde standing beside her, grinning broadly and nodding with determination.

Sakura's eyebrows rose with question. "What's settled?"

"I'm going to have Chouji convince Kiba to act on his feelings and ask you out." Ino was still nodding as if her plan was playing over in her mind and she greatly approved of it. "Can't have you asking him out; you have to play a little hard to get to keep him interested." Sakura frowned.

"I don't know about this Ino. I mean, Kiba and I are friends and I don't want to mess-" But Ino cut Sakura off with a harsh scoff and a wave of her hand.

"Don't start Sakura." Ino rolled her eyes and planted her fists on her hips, glaring almost accusingly at Sakura who felt a bit awkward under Ino's harsh blue gaze. "You're always working and if you're not working you're training and if you're not training you're at home reading your medical scrolls or sleeping. You need to lay some time aside for fun and Kiba is more then capable and obviously more then willing to give you that _fun_." Ino smirked knowingly and Sakura couldn't help but blush.

She was right and Sakura knew it; she did work way too hard and it had been so long since Sakura had let loose and had some fun. Maybe this would be good for her and despite herself Sakura couldn't help but think she would enjoy it. Just thinking about how close Kiba had been to her just moments ago was making those butterflies in her stomach flutter.

Sakura gave a defeated sigh. "Alright Ino, I'll play your match-making game." She was trying to sound defeated, as if Ino was twisting her arm but Sakura just couldn't help but smile dreamily as she thought about her possible date with Kiba. No doubt it would be fun; Kiba had a notorious reputation for being a bit of a party animal.

"Well then let the games begin." Ino smiled coyly as she slipped her arm inside Sakura's and the two headed down the street together.

* * *

**Otachii:** Ehehe... the GTCBR fans are gonna kill me for this. ^_^; It's been a very long while since I updated that story I know I know, but I've been going through a lot these past months, lots of family drama. I've found it so hard to be inspired to write anything but the idea for this story just came to me one night and it wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it and put it up. I promise though the third chapter for GTCBR is almost done and should be up soon.

Until then I hope everyone enjoys this side fic that explores the darker, steamier side of the KakaSaku fandom.

The title was inspired by the CSS Comunity _When Sakura Kissed the Teacher_ because the minuet I found it I immeidately thought it would make a great title for a fan fiction and then I got to thinking what a fan fiction that had that title would be about and that doujin immediately came to mind. I hope the community douesn't mind me borrowing the title, it just inspired me so much.

Kiba fans don't fret, he won't be victimized... not too much anyway. All I'll say is that I as a writer like to make sure _all_ characters get their happy endings and that's all I'll say on the matter so as not to spoil anything.

Oh, and if anyone knows the creator of that Three Kisses doujin would you please tell me! I'd like to give them proper credit...


	2. Doctor, Doctor!

**Chapter Two**

**Doctor, Doctor!**

_I shiver when I hear your name, think about you but it's not the same._

_I won't be satisfied 'til I'm under your skin._

_Shiver_ by Maroon 5

"So what do you say Kiba?" Chouji inquired around the rim of his sake dish.

Kiba heaved an exasperated sigh. "I don't know Chouji; God, what's with this sudden interest in my love-life?" He downed his own dish of the clear alcohol, enjoying the faint burn as it slipped down his throat.

Chouji had spent the last hour sitting at the bar with him trying to convince Kiba to ask Sakura out on a date. Now Kiba wasn't against the whole idea, but being put on the spot like that made him feel like shrinking back. It was foolish by all accounts considering the great lengths he had gone to just to be in the presence of the pretty kunoichi with the bubblegum hair and candy-coated smiles. But now that people were starting to pick up on the scent Kiba felt the desire to cut and run.

"Ino threatened to cut him off if he didn't get you to man-up and confess to Sakura." Shikamaru offered matter-of-factly with an almost taunting smirk at his old-time pal which earned him a shove and a heated glare.

"Ah, so that's it!" Kiba barked light-heartedly. "A man really will do anything for sex huh?" He simpered.

"Why I'm doing it is beside the point." Chouji shot in a haughty tone. "The real question that needs answering is why I even have to try and convince you. What's up with you Kiba?" Chouji questioned with a thoughtful frown.

Shikamaru nodded around the rim of his dish. "Yeah; what happened to the suave Kiba who always bragged about his many _conquests_ with the boys after missions, no matter how much they didn't want to hear about them?"

Kiba smirked as Chouji nudged him pointedly. "Hey I'm just as smooth and slick as I always was." He bragged in a cocky tone. "It's just…" Kiba paused to give an almost dreamy sigh as his arrogant demeanor fell to something of a more humble design. "It's different with Sakura."

"Love turns even the most assured men into foolish little boys." Lee offered wisely from the other side of Shikamaru in that ever-passionate tone of his that seemed to make his eyes glow with fire. He gripped hard at his glass of water, a tight fist rising as if to press his point.

Kiba rolled his eyes, Chouji shook his head and Shikamaru snorted.

"Well Kiba sure as hell has been acting foolish lately." Shikamaru said with a lazy smirk as he pulled a cigarette from the pack in his pocket, placed it between his lips and sparked his lighter to set the tip of the stick to a blaze. For someone who had always hated smoking the young man had developed quite the habit but under the influence of his dad and his late sensei what else was to be expected?

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kiba inquired rather defensively as he shot Shikamaru a very annoyed look to rival his all-knowing one.

"I've been hearing some pretty interesting things about you Kiba." Shikamaru started as Chouji's brows rose with interest while Lee and Shino, who had remained very quiet as usual during the whole conversation, leaned in closer for a better listen. "See my student Amai isn't so good with chakra control or hand-to-hand combat but when it comes to gathering information she's the reigning queen so naturally she's up on all the latest gossip in Konoha and loves to share it with me." Shikamaru took a long drag of his cigarette and sighed, smoke pillowing past his lips. "Whether I want to hear it or not."

Shikamaru shook his head, that easy smirk of his back on his lips as he looked away from Kiba and continued. "Your students aren't as loyal as you think they are Kiba, they've been talking." Kiba frowned deeply and looked to his empty sake dish but the other men hung on Shikamaru's every word. "Seems you've been having them practicing their aim with their kunai and throwing stars on your back. They say you're claiming it's to help your endurance but Amai has also discovered that you've been going to the clinic quite a lot over the last couple of weeks and each time you go you hold-out to see Sakura."

Chouji's eyes widened as he looked toward Kiba. "You're letting your students carve up your back just so you can have an excuse to go see her?"

"That's the most romantic thing I've ever heard." Lee choked as tears formed in his round eyes and his lower lip quivered.

"Sounds idiotic to me." Shino finally spoke in a very blunt and offhanded tone.

"You'll slice up your back for her but you won't ask her out on a date?" Chouji pressed and Kiba rolled his eyes as he pushed away from the bar and slipped lazily from his stool.

"I'm gonna call it a night." He gave a backwards wave as he headed for the door.

"Hey Kiba…" Shino called easily from the bar, not bothering to turn around so that his back was to his longtime companion when Kiba paused and turned in the door to cast a disinterested look toward the bug master. "You gonna do it or what?"

Shino might not have had the ambition to turn but the other men certainly did; Lee, Chouji and even Shikamaru had all turned their eyes expectantly on Kiba. It was unsettling and Kiba felt awkward under the three pairs of scrutinizing and curious gazes. _'Am I gonna do it?'_ He silently questioned himself.

A cocky grin spread across his face. "'Course I am!" He exclaimed like a warrior courageously rushing off into battle. To that Chouji and Lee cheered and raised their drinks high, even Shikamaru and Shino gave a slight incline of their sake dishes.

It was encouraging, sending a rush up Kiba's spine that sent a warm tingle running through his veins. _'Hell yeah I'll do it!'_ And with the support of his friends standing behind him to cheer him on he'd win the heart of the fair pink-haired maiden and one day stand triumphantly at the alter with her. Kiba smiled as he turned to head out the door; '_Yeah, everything will be just fine.'_

A familiar face coming through the door just as he was going out rocked Kiba out of his little fantasy world where he had just managed to undo the last button on Sakura's wedding dress. The face was not in the least bit threatening and in no way terrifying yet somehow it sent a wave of horror over Kiba's being that had him frozen in place. Those piercingly gleeful blue eyes, that perfectly spiked blond hair and that easy-going and somehow moronic grin; none of it seemed at all dangerous yet it sent up a signal of distress in Kiba's brain.

"Hey Kiba!" The lips parted to let that familiar high-toned voice to seep through, still formed into that big silly smile. Kiba cleared his throat to both bring back his voice and snap his mind out of its panicked little frenzy.

"Naruto." He gave a nod of greeting.

Now no respectable Konoha shinobi would fear one of their own, especially when it was a guy like Uzumaki Naruto; he was a great shinobi but there was nothing particularly threatening about him as long as he wasn't seriously angry. But it didn't take a lot to anger Naruto who, childish as ever, jumped hastily to conclusions and let his emotions carry him all the way and Kiba knew for certain that catching just a whiff of him approaching Sakura with intentions Naruto would automatically deem _"impure"_ would enrage the blond.

Sure Naruto claimed to be over Sakura, said that he felt nothing more for her then what a brother would feel for their lovingly abusive older sister, but that in itself was dangerous. Naruto was insanely protective of everyone close to him and Sakura was about as close as she could get to Naruto without being in his pants. Kiba would definitely have to tread lightly; he didn't want to cause any problems and more-so he didn't want to die anytime soon.

"You aint leaving are ya?" Naruto sounded surprised and disappointed as he reached up to pull off the fox ANBU mask that rested on the side of his head and hold it at his side. Sasuke stood quietly at his side, looking disinterested as always; they both had obviously just gotten back from a mission and in Naruto's haste to get to the bar so he could brag about how utterly awesome he had done neither man had had time to change out of their ANBU uniform. "We just got here!"

"Sorry man." Kiba chuckled a bit uneasily but Naruto didn't seem to notice the nervous way the man shuffled his feet though Sasuke had begun to watch him with those sharp eyes of his. "I've got some stuff to take care of tomorrow so I gotta call it an early night."

Naruto frowned but nodded. "Alright, I'll see ya later then." He passed Kiba, followed more slowly by Sasuke who was still watching Kiba who exhaled a long grateful breath when finally the two of them past him.

'_Thank God he's such an oblivious idiot.'_ Kiba thought to himself with a grin as he exited the building in the wake of Naruto's loud greeting when he reached the bar and the company of his buddies. It was a bit worrisome how intensely Sasuke had looked at him, but the final Uchiha was a pretty intense guy so Kiba didn't fret too much over it.

It would be fine; as long as he made it clear that his intentions were completely good then there would be no problems. He and Naruto had always had a rather rocky relationship with constant bickering and poking fun at one another, but they were friendly enough for the eccentric blond man to know that Kiba was a good enough guy. He wouldn't treat Sakura badly and he'd do everything he could to make sure she was happy, that he never hurt her. Kiba knew what it felt like to be hurt by the one who held your heart and he never wanted anyone, especially Sakura, to feel like that.

As if on cue, because fate was a cruel Mistress to Inuzuka Kiba, his eyes drew up to lock upon two figures casually strolling down the opposite side of the street arm-in-arm. The male figure was talking quietly to the girl who hung on his arm and though Kiba couldn't hear what it was he was saying it must have been something mesmerizing because the female looked positively enraptured as she hung not only on his arm but on his every word. That young woman was Hyuuga Hinata, a girl Kiba had pined for so desperately in his younger years, and the man whose arm she hung on was Hyuuga Neji; her cousin, but also, more importantly, her fiancé.

'_Someone up there really doesn't like me huh?'_ Kiba would think to the heavens as his eyes darted up to the darkened sky bitterly.

"Oh… Kiba-san!" His eyes fell upon the sweet young woman who had inhabited his childhood dreams so often to find that she and Neji had stopped in front of him.

She smiled so brightly at Kiba, just like she always did, just like she would to any of her friends because that's all he was; he was her friend, her colleague. It had hurt at first, the realization that her smiles of love and adoration were only meant to be shared with the man whose arm she clung to so desperately. Hyuuga Neji; he did not smile at Kiba, but then again that man never smiled unless he was looking at Hinata. Maybe that was what had drawn her to him, had allowed her to throw caution to the wind and turn her back on what the people in the village might think or say. Maybe the fact that Neji would only ever smile for Hinata was what had allowed the stoic young man to snatch her away from Kiba.

"Hello Hinata-chan." Kiba offered with a smile that was just as bright as her own, disguising his indignant thoughts with the happy crinkles of his eyes and the caving in of his dimples; he had learned to be quite the actor in her presence. "Neji-san." He nodded to the other man who in return nodded a greeting.

"Are you headed home for the night?" Hinata inquired thoughtfully with a tilt of her head. Kiba nodded once more, slipping his hands into the pockets of pants to hide the way his fists clenched tightly when Neji reached up to affectionately brush a stray hair from Hinata's pale eyes. Her cheeks would turn a soft shade of pink and she would giggle quietly causing Kiba to grit his teeth but his discomfort was disguised well with his smile.

"Well I'll leave you two to your evening." Kiba offered politely with a slight bow before moving past the happy couple.

"Wait Kiba-san!" He paused, turning his head toward Hinata as she called to him. "I never received a reply for the invitation to our wedding that I sent you." Kiba's heart felt as if it had twisted inside his chest and he had to fight back the urge to cringe. "You are going to come aren't you?" The young woman posed hopefully.

Kiba's fists clenched tighter in his pockets; he told himself time and time again that he was over the sweet young Hyuuga and for the most part he was, but no one ever completely got over their first love. He wanted nothing more then for Hinata to be happy and he would never show any contempt to her for simply following her heart but it still hurt. Though he hid it well with his smiles and casual conversation the pain was still there buried beneath the surface.

But Kiba would never show it and would smile easily. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." Of course he wouldn't tell her he had crumpled the invitation up the minuet he had found it in the mail and that a string of curse words had followed it all the way to his trash bin. So Hinata was satisfied and showed so with her smile and with a final nod Kiba turned and headed on his way.

The Hyuuga cousins too headed along their merry way, wrapped up in one another and blissfully unaware, or rather uncaring, of the whispered uproar of scandal they caused wherever they went. _'Now that's love.' _Kiba thought and it was and that was Kiba's only comfort in the whole situation; Hinata was happy and to wish anything less for her would make an ass out of Kiba and a mockery of the deep feelings he had held for her. No matter how sad it made him Kiba couldn't be mad at the young Hyuuga female for following her heart.

It had to be deep feelings that kept her locked at Neji's side, facing the brunt of the daily scrutiny they faced. What else could make her take all the disapproving stares and disgusted whispers with a smile when she walked arm in arm with the man she had promised herself to? The willingness to bear it all just for the sake of being with someone, to Kiba that was the deepest love there could be and he was happy Hinata found it. He only wished he two could taste such bliss, could feel such burning passion for and coming from another.

'_Maybe it's finally my time.'_ Kiba though with a confident smirk tugging up the corners of his lips as the memory of Sakura's smiling face and laughing eyes while she tended his wounds as he jabbered on animatedly while laying on one of the clinic beds filled his mind as he entered his apartment building. _'Maybe she's the one.'_ Kiba went on in his mind as he approached his front door and rummaged through his pockets for his keys. Already he could hear Akamaru's happy pants and excited whines on the other side of the door.

'_Maybe…'_

_----------------------------------------------------_

"My God Kiba; what did you do to yourself _today_?!" Sakura gasped as she entered the examination room to find Kiba lying on the high bed provided his chest bare, his green vest and black shirt tossed untidily in a chair beside the bed, to show off various stab wounds scattered all around his chest and stomach. The wounds were small but judging by the amount of blood staining his vest and shirt and smeared across his skin they were rather deep though Sakura could already tell none were very serious.

"Uh, well…" Kiba gave a nervous laugh and apologetic grin, as if to express regret for yet another stupid incident that led to his injuries that he was about to tell her. "Ya see…" He went on as he moved to sit up, flinching and clenching his teeth to bear his sharpened canines as the action obviously pained him.

"Don't move." Sakura sighed, momentarily losing her resolve as all intention of scolding the careless young man was washed away when she saw that he was in pain.

She had been very busy going over hospital procedure with some new nurses, something Sakura liked to do personally so she knew that everyone was well-informed, when she heard word that Kiba was once again in the clinic and refused to let anyone touch him until she came and took a look personally. Now Sakura could understand the man's want for an experienced medic-nin but there were plenty of others in the hospital _besides_ Sakura that could care for his little cuts just as well. But Kiba was stubborn and just wouldn't listen to reason and though Sakura admittedly enjoyed the young man's company and the chats they had and was flattered that he trusted her medical know-how so spiritedly his frequent _"need"_ for her was becoming a bit of a nuisance and a hindrance.

Running Konoha's hospital was no easy job, even for someone with Sakura's training it was a bit of a headache; making sure all the patients were well taken care of, being sure that everything that could be done was being done for each individual, assuring families and friends that they were in good hands and that was just matters with the patients. Then there was making sure all the forms and files were done out right and sorted correctly, checking over and resorting and reorganizing decades of poorly kept and filed records, all of which Sakura trusted with no one other then herself and so she was usually all alone with all that work.

So Sakura had a lot on her plate and didn't have time to play Kiba's personal nurse. Still, she couldn't just turn the young man away.

Kiba was quick to listen, laying himself back while Sakura moved across the room, grabbing a stack of large cotton pads and a brown bottle before approaching Kiba. "Tell me what happened." She said more gently, her tone almost motherly as she soaked a pad with the clear liquid she poured carefully out of the bottle.

"Well I was teaching my students the proper technique to hit moving targets with throwing stars." Kiba explained with a soft sigh as the cool soaked cotton moved against his flesh, clearing the blood from his skin. It stung a bit when it touched his cuts but Kiba had felt worse pain and there was something so soothing about the gentleness with which Sakura worked that it just didn't bother him. "Once I demonstrated I figured it was time for them to practice so I hooked up some dummies to a cart, tied it to Akamaru and let him pull it along while the kids chased it and threw their weapons.

"Not one of the little bastards hit a single target, not even Mimi." Kiba laughed and Sakura couldn't help but smile; that's what Kiba called his students the_ 'little bastards'_, it seemed like such a disdainful title, yet ironically his eyes always lit up whenever he spoke of any of them. He loved all three of them like they were his own, Sakura could tell, but he'd never admit it. "So I demonstrated for them again; this time I even chased the cart and threw the stars thinking that maybe they needed to see more then just the wrist and arm movements. But again, not one of them hit a target when they tried." Kiba sighed. "So naturally I got frustrated."

It was Sakura's turn to sigh. "Kiba you-"

"I know, I know." Kiba cut her off with a chuckle and an animated wave of his hand. "_'You need to be patient, they're just kids.'"_ He went on for her in his best Sakura-mimicking voice with its high-pitched tone and its haughty little manner. Sakura glared at the young man, giving a painful pinch to the side of his stomach, digging in her nails and twisting his flesh, all while her other hand carefully patted his wounds. "Gah!" Kiba hollered with a jolt. "Alright, alright, I'm sorry!"

"Go on then." Sakura ordered sweetly with a satisfied grin as she retrieved another soaked pad and worked at clearing away the remainder of the blood from Kiba's chest.

"_Anyway_..." Kiba stressed, reaching down to rub the bruise that was forming on the side of his stomach gingerly. "So I overreacted a little bit, told them that they were all pathetic and that I was ashamed to have them as a team and they… well they came after me." Sakura's eyes widened.

"Your students attacked you?" Sakura gasped in disbelief and Kiba nodded.

"Yep, chased me through the training fields." Kiba grumbled. "I thought they were all behind me but that sneaky little Kouki somehow got ahead of me and came at me from the front. Surprised me so good he managed to hit me with every one of his throwing stars. Then Mamoru runs up out of no where and hits me with most of his while Mimi's got me trapped from behind." Kiba shook his head and sighed once more before his lips twisted into a proud smirk. "I was so impressed with their ambushing skills I gave them the rest of the day off."

Kiba chuckled as Sakura exploded with laughter, nearly knocking over the brown bottle which she promptly grabbed and moved toward the cabinet to place it back inside. Still laughing heartily Sakura came back over to Kiba, gathering warm green chakra into her hands.

"That's awful Kiba-san." Sakura giggled with a shake of her head as she raised her hands and began to heal Kiba's wounds with ease, her fingers and palms brushing his chest ever-so-lightly. "But there's no denying that you deserved it."

Kiba grinned and nodded hoping Sakura didn't notice the way his body shivered just slightly under the warmth of her touch. "Yeah, I can be a real ass sometimes I guess. But I'm a good enough guy, right?"

"Yes you are." Sakura answered softly, her jade eyes never straying from her work.

She had indeed noticed Kiba's reaction to her touch and her reaction in turn came in the form of a heat that radiated in her belly and shot up to brighten her fair cheeks. She had also just taken notice of her current state with the young man; he was half naked lying there casually and, as inner Sakura put it, looking _**'Oh so yummy!' **_and there she was, hunched over him, fully clothed but looking a mess and feeling very self-conscious about it.

She was dressed in her usual hospital attire; her white coat pulled over her uniform and her short pink hair held out of her face by a band. But her hair was untidy with long stray locks of hair falling in her face and hadn't been washed in a few days and the buttons of her coat were askew as Sakura had been too busy to take the time to make sure she was doing it right. She didn't look bad really, she could have looked worse, but she didn't look at all appealing and suddenly she was very aware of that fact.

But Kiba didn't seem to mind; in fact he couldn't take his eyes off Sakura, another thing the young rosette-haired kunoichi had taken notice of. It made her heart hammer in her chest and her face feel even hotter and suddenly Sakura was thankful for the state of her hair as it helped to shield her face from Kiba's view though it was doubtful that the young man didn't see how fiercely she was blushing.

He did see and he liked it. Sakura's nervousness made Kiba's confidence grow and he would simply lay there, a cool smirk on his face as he watched her.

"I have to check for internal injuries." Sakura offered quietly, explaining away the need to have her fingers caressing down his chest and stomach the way they did when all his wounds were healed, guiding her warm chakra into his body.

Internal injuries were highly unlikely with injuries as minor as Kiba's had been, but it was better to be safe then it was to be sorry. At least that was the excuse Sakura would use to keep her hands sliding along Kiba's skin. It was strange; Sakura had seen the male body so many times, had touched the chests and stomachs of hundreds of men when treating their wounds yet none of them had ever made her heart race the way the feel of Kiba's did. Why was that? Was it because she knew he liked her? She didn't know.

She slid her fingertips over every hard muscle, every dip and crevice of his abs as if to memorize every inch of his front. Kiba wasn't very muscular, wasn't bulky or bulging in the slightest but he was tone, years of shinobi life having caused him to be well-defined. She wanted to dive into him, wanted to explore every inch of him, wanted to savor him so that she could forever remember the heat it caused inside her belly when she touched him. She was no longer acting like his doctor, her behavior was shameful, it was abuse of power, it was a betrayal of Kiba's trust but she just couldn't help herself.

'_I'm a sick pervert.'_ Even as she thought that she couldn't stop herself, but unbeknownst to Sakura Kiba didn't mind her _"assault"_ on him in the slightest.

As Sakura savored the feel of Kiba, Kiba was busy relishing in her touch. Her hands were so gentle, so feathery against his flesh that it was torturous how slow she moved and how unwilling she was to move her hands further down. She looked so concentrated, so wrapped up in watching herself touch him that Kiba was hard-pressed to say that watching her watch her hands caress his body wasn't running him on something fierce. But he played it off, played it cool. He knew he'd have to take it slow with Sakura, knew he'd have to be careful with her and that was what he fully intended to do. He respected her far too much to do anything less.

So it was with ginger movements that Kiba reached up a hand to ever-so-delicately touch his fingers to one of Sakura's enflamed cheeks and guide a stray lock of her hair behind her ear to brush it out of her face. Perhaps the move was a mistake as it seemed to frighten Sakura who was deep in her own self-loathing thoughts over how utterly unprofessional she was being.

Sakura's head snapped up, her eyes locking with Kiba's questioning one briefly before her head bowed and her hands jerked away from his body quickly, as if suddenly burnt by his flesh. She had been caught, had been discovered. _'Oh God how embarrassing!'_ She wailed in her mind, wanting to scream and cry over how foolish she had been acting. _'Someone please just kill me; put me out of my misery!' _Her mind went on dramatically as inner Sakura sobbed, more over the loss of the warmth of Kiba's skin then the mortification of having him suddenly realize that she was basically molesting him.

"I-I'm sorry Kiba-san." Sakura stammered, raising her hands to tug and wring her fingers nervously in front of her stomach. "I just got d-distracted, you know, my mind just wandered off. I-I didn't realize I was…" Sakura trailed off, stuttering and laughing nervously as she watched her hands ruthlessly handle one-another.

This was bad; Kiba would surely think her to be some sort of sexual deviant who used her influence as a medical-nin and her patients' trust in her to abuse her power and assault them. Not only would he despise her but she would definitely lose her job, not to mention the respect of everyone in Konoha and everything she had worked so hard to get.

'_**This is all Ino's**__**fault!'**_ Inner Sakura raved and Sakura whole-heartedly agreed. If Ino hadn't put all that nonsense in her head about her having a crush on Kiba and Kiba returning said feelings she would have never behaved so recklessly. _'Damn you Ino! Damn you to h…"_

But Sakura's thoughts were interrupted as, much to the young kunoichi's obvious surprise, Kiba reached out to partially cover Sakura's writhing hands with one of his own. Green eyes would shift, looking up to find that the young man had sat up and was staring at her intently with his piercing brown eyes, his lips formed into a rather coy grin that bared his elongated canines that for some reason made Sakura tingle all over. She could just imagine what those sharp tips would feel like grazing the skin of her neck. Sakura bit the inside of her cheek, suppressing the excited squeal that threatened to burst from her lungs if she parted her lips even just a little.

'_**Gah! He's so sexy!'**_ Inner Sakura squealed for her and Sakura was quick to agree with her second-self.

"It's alright Sakura." He began in a cool and calm tone that made Sakura feel weak, so wrapped up in his words and so lost in his eyes in fact, Sakura hardly even noticed as he drew her hands up and guided them back onto his chest right over his steadily beating heart. "I like it when you touch me like that." His sly grin grew as if he knew that his words made Sakura's knees go weak and it took all her strength to just remain standing. _'I love you Ino…'__** 'Thank God for invasive blonde bitches!'**_

"Kiba-san…" She offered his name in a shaky little whisper as she watched him come closer to her. He leaned in and the movement caused her hands to slip up his chest, her digits unconsciously sliding around his shoulders so her fingers laced at the base of his neck and her palms cupped the back of it gently.

"Sakura-chan." He in turn breathed her name, just as shakily as his hands found there way onto her hips, the tips of his sharpened nails pressing in lightly so as not to cause her pain. The sensation made Sakura shiver. "Can I kiss you?" He inquired in an eager little whisper even as his lips drew ever closer to her own.

Could he kiss her? Sakura was having trouble processing the question; it felt like her mind was swimming. _'Can he kiss me?'_ She repeated the question to herself. _**'Hell yeah he can kiss you!'**_ Inner Sakura screamed but Sakura could only manage to offer Kiba a simple nod. She was acting foolish and she knew it, like a silly young girl with a silly little crush. Like the way she used to act around Sasuke and she was aware it was very dumb; she was twenty-one years old not thirteen. But she just couldn't help it; the way Kiba made her feel forced her to revert to her childish little ways.

He was so close, his breath was warm against her face and once again Sakura could smell that intoxicating scent of cinnamon on his tongue. His tongue, _'Oh God!'_ his tongue was sliding against her lips, the tip brushing their crease to gently try and part the pillowing tiers and part they did to allow his wet muscle inside to lap lightly at the spearmint taste that rested on her own tongue. Their lips brushed, pressing together as Kiba's cinnamon-coated tongue invaded her mouth and brought all of Sakura's senses to life. All she could taste was the crisp taste of his tongue; she could smell it as she inhaled deeply to whimper ever-so-lightly into the kiss, could feel it running through her veins and swore she could even hear it mingling and connecting with her own as saliva was exchanged through pats and wiggles of the tongue.

But the taste was short-lived.

"Haruno-sama!" An exasperated nurse practically shouted as she stormed into the examination room and in a frenzied snap of her arms Sakura shoved Kiba away from her so hard that he went spilling off the high bed backwards, head-first with a surprised holler, doing a sort of backwards summersault before hitting the floor with a loud _**thud **_and a harsh _**crack**_ as the back of his head hit the wall behind him leaving a very large dent in the plaster.

"Yes?" Sakura inquired in a breathless squeak of a voice as she ran her fingers through the hair that had fallen out of her ponytail along the side of her face in an attempt to hide the heated flush of her cheeks. She was so embarrassed (not to mention rather excited which only worsened the embarrassment) and she could only hope the nurse hadn't noticed her and Kiba's close proximity when she had so rudely burst in on them.

It was clear by the blush on her own plump cheeks that she had. "W-we need you to… um…" She paused, as if forgetting why exactly she had had to interrupt Haruno-sama's _session_ with Inuzuka Kiba so urgently that knocking was not an option. "Sign the forms so we can prep Fujiyama Shuichi for his surgery." The hefty brunette nurse snapped nervously, thrusting said forms attached to their clipboard toward Sakura.

"Of course." Sakura chuckled anxiously, retrieving the forms from the nurse she knew only as Hanako-san to quickly offer her signature to each form.

"Um…" Hanako began as she took back the clipboard, staring over Sakura's shoulder at Kiba who was hunched over cradling his head between his knees on the floor and gripping the back of it. "Is Inuzuka-san going to be alright?"

Sakura gave an awkward laugh that was much louder then necessary. "Oh yeah he'll be just fine, he has a hard head." Sakura offered an uneasy grin as the nurse nodded slowly. "Thank you Hanako-san."

It was only when she heard the click of the door as Hanako made her departure that Sakura turned and rushed to Kiba's side. He was conscious, always a good sign, but judging by the way he grimaced and the large bump growing on the back of his head under his fingertips, noticeable even beneath his spiky dark brown locks he was in pain.

"Oh gosh Kiba-san I'm so sorry!" She exclaimed as she knelt down in front of the young man between his spread knees, brushing his hands away from his head carefully to get a good look at his head. "It's not serious, I know it hurts though, I'm so sorry." She went on in a worried tone as she gathered her warm green chakra into her hand and held it over the bump, instantly soothing the lump as she healed it away.

To her surprise Kiba chuckled. "You've got a hell of a shove Sakura-chan; I can't even imagine what it'd be like to get punched by you." His head rose to show off that toothy grin of his, one Sakura couldn't help but smile softly in reply to, her heart melting at the sight of those adorable dimples and those sweet gleaming brown eyes of his.

With her hand still resting on the back of his head and her kneeling between his knees Kiba and Sakura were left in rather close proximity once again. They were so close in fact that Kiba's chest brushed just lightly against her own and once again Sakura found that warm tingle growing in her belly. Once again she could smell that sweet cinnamon on his breath, remembering its taste and found herself longing to _once again_ be introduced to its refreshing taste.

Sakura giggled and bowed her head almost shyly. "I know, I'm really sorry." She offered softly, her eyes on her knees as she sat back on her heels and drew her hand away from Kiba's head once she was finished healing it.

"Don't be." Kiba smiled and reached up to grasp Sakura's wrist softly, keeping her from taking her hand away and using it to slowly guide her toward him, giving her ample time to pull away. But Sakura did not pull away, instead she looked up into Kiba's eyes and found herself anxiously awaiting his next move as he pulled her to him so that their chests met, her soft small breasts molding against his slim finely toned muscles. "I know how you can make it up to me."

Sakura's heart was doing flip flops in her chest; her breathing had become a bit unsteady and was caught in her throat. "H-How?" She managed to breathe out as their lips came to linger close to one another's and once again Kiba was smirking coolly at her. _'God, he's so sexy when he smirks.'_ She thought to herself in a daze. _**'Ch'yeah, lay it on us boy!' **_And for once Sakura had no objections to her inner self's blunt rant.

He offered a sweet but short kiss to her parted lips. "You can come out with me tonight." He grinned with satisfaction as Sakura smiled softly at him.

'_He's so sweet.'_ She thought and it was true; Kiba really was so sweet and it made her want to throw herself into his arms and cling to him. Yet for some unforeseen reason that made her heart clench she was disappointed. _'I wanted him to say- _Ugh_, I'm such a pervert.' _She interrupted her own train of thought, feeling flustered over her own thoughts.

'_Did I really want him to ask something like that of me?'_ It was improbable; if Kiba or any man for that matter, ever dared try to coax sexual favors from her Sakura would have hit him so hard he'd have more then just a bad lump on the head to deal with. But for some reason she had wanted him to ask it, wanted him to tease her with mock-desperation that portrayed a simmering pot of want inside him. She wanted to feel like he wanted her, even if it was just to taunt her, even if she knew she'd strangle him for it and he knew it just as well. No matter how selfish that made her it was what she wanted.

But she should be satisfied; it was clear Kiba wanted to be with her. So why wasn't she? Because it didn't make her feel wanted as a woman. It didn't make her feel breathless or make her insides tingle and her mind cloud. It didn't make her feel the way… the way… _'The way Kakashi did that night.' _The way she felt whenever he happened to look her way.

'_God I really am deluded!' _She scolded herself inwardly. _'What the hell is wrong with me? Why can't I just let it go? Just let it go Sakura, just let it go!'_

"Sakura." Kiba pressed gently, reaching up to stroke her cheek in an ever-so-gentle and very comforting manner, his fingertips brushing those stray locks of her bubblegum hair behind her ear, breaking Sakura from her thoughts. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

Sakura's jade eyes rose to meet his chestnut ones that were as cottony soft as his touch. _'He really is so sweet. I could fall for a guy like him.' _"It's not that Kiba." She bit softly at her lower lip. There was no way she could tell him what she had really be thinking of; not only would it likely offend him greatly but he would probably think her a horribly twisted person. "There's just always a lot of work to be done at the hospital."

"Yeah so I've heard." Kiba sighed, drawing his hands away to press them to the floor behind him as he leaned back comfortably. Again Sakura felt that pang of disappointment as the warmth of his chest left her own. _'Am I really that needy?'_ She thought to herself, pushing such thoughts to the back of her mind as Kiba smiled at her. "But c'mon Sakura; you're always working. You need to make some time for fun ya know?" Sakura sighed and nodded, it seemed everyone thought she worked too hard. "Can't you get someone to cover for you? You are the boss after all." Kiba grinned. "I promise I'll make it worth your while." He reached up to stroke his fingers down her cheek and offered her a coy wink.

Sakura's heart fluttered, her cheeks turning a soft crimson as she bit her lower lip and nodded. "Alright." She agreed with a smile. If so many people were saying she needed to give herself a break then it had to be true and honestly Sakura was rather looking forward to going out with Kiba; there was no doubt in her mind that it would be a good time.

Kiba beamed. "Great!" He exclaimed as he hopped up to his feet, bringing his crotch to level with Sakura's face and with how close they were to one another it was impossible not to notice.

The blush upon Sakura's cheeks grew three shades darker as she too quickly rose to stand, bringing her hands up to her hair to fix her ponytail in an attempt to occupy herself while Kiba slipped his bloody shirt and vest back on. She undid then redid her ponytail so that it looked neat and gave her a more professional look before she turned to find that Kiba was staring at her while adjusting the flaps of his vest which he always left unzipped. He just stared and so did Sakura, unsure of what to say and feeling very shy under Kiba's piercing gaze and satisfied smile, his expression dewy; he was looking at her the way a proud boyfriend would look at his girl and it made Sakura's heart hammer in her chest. _'He's not my boyfriend.'_ She silently reminded herself. _**'Not yet!'**_ Inner Sakura chimed in with determination and Sakura just couldn't help but smile slightly.

"I'll pick you up at like nine then?" Kiba cleared his throat, finally realizing he was gawking at her and Sakura's smile grew.

"I don't think that's such a good idea." Kiba's demeanor fell. "I mean, Ino and Tenten are my roommates and Tenten's polite enough but Ino will definitely give you the third-degree when you show up at the door." Sakura offered quickly. "How about I just meet you to save you the aggravation?" Kiba instantly perked up.

"Yeah good point." He laughed, nodding assuredly. "Alright, sounds good to me. You wanna meet at the bar then? Have a drink then head out?" He inquired and Sakura nodded.

"Sounds good, where are we going?"

Kiba's lips parted in a wide grin, exposing his sharp canines to make Sakura's heart do flip-flops in her chest. "It's a secret." He said in a hushed tone and though Sakura frowned and moved her lips in protest she found herself silenced as in one swift motion Kiba swooped toward her and descended upon her, leaning down to match her shorter height and cover her mouth with his own. It was another short kiss that left Sakura itching for something she couldn't identify. "I'll see you tonight." He mumbled down as his lips left hers and Sakura gave a shy little smile that seemed to accentuate the blush upon her cheeks and nodded.

Then he was gone, leaving Sakura warm, dazed and more then a little bit confused. Had that really just happened? Was she really going on a date with Kiba?

"Kiba…" Sakura whispered his name, still standing in the middle of the room as if unsure what to do next. His name uttered upon her lips so affectionately made her heart pang and Sakura reached up to press her palm over it with a slow gasp.

'_Why does it hurt so much?'_

* * *

**Otachii:** Here it is people, the second chapter giving y'all a peek into the drama (and of course the smut) to come. x3 It was much longer but I decided to cut it down and move the rest into chapter three so that chapter should be around soon... hopefully. Unfortunately I've been having issues with writers block, hence why the third chapter of GTCBR isn't out yet. -Sigh.- I'll hurdle over it eventually.

In the next chapter a romantic rival (oh I wonder who it could possibly be) shall be introduced! Not only that but you'll be meeting Kiba's_ 'Little _Bastards' who will be playing a big role in this fic. Mostly just because I liked the characters I came up with so much that I had to give them a bigger role. xP

So stay tuned!

Oh, BTW... **NO NEJIHINA BASHING!** Seriously, leave my fandom alone or I'll send my army of ninja penguins with their sporks of doom and destruction after you.


	3. Only Fools Fall in Love

**Chapter Three**

**Only Fools Fall in Love**

_I shiver when I hear your name, think about you but it's not the same._

_I won't be satisfied 'til I'm under your skin._

_Shiver_ by Maroon 5

Kiba was completely unaware of the inner battle Sakura was fighting, really the young man was in such a daze as he moved through the hallways of the hospital and out the front door that a bomb could have gone off right in front of him and he wouldn't have batted an eyelash. He was on cloud nine. _'She said yes, she said yes!'_ Over and over it repeated in his mind and each time Kiba felt himself soaring higher and higher.

He was so oblivious to the world around him, unable to care about anything other then the fact that Sakura had agreed to go out with him that he didn't even notice his three young students sitting on a bench outside the hospital waiting for him.

"Yo Kiba-sensei!" A young boy with long dusty brown hair that cut off shaggily at the nape of his neck, held out of his slender face by his bandana-style hitai-ite called out with an excitable wave of one long arm. The boy was tall, abnormally so for his age, and rather lanky so naturally he had little grace in his movements as he ran up to Kiba's side, standing a few inches taller then his sensei's full height. "How'd it go?" He asked with a knowing grin and a suggestive wiggle of his brows.

With his awkward height and short attention span for anything that didn't involve either girls or video games Itoshii Mamoru was known as the klutz of Kiba's little group of students and rightfully so. The young man was always tripping over his own two feet and had been forever banned from handling anything fragile in nearly ever shop in Konoha, especially the one his parents owned. He was an excitable boy, easily fired up but just as easily distracted by the smile of a pretty girl or the twinkle of a video game disk but with his long legs and hyper movements he was quick on his feet and with his reflexes. His only problem was he could never keep track of all of his limbs, hence why he could never seem to stay on his feet for too long. He just needed better control of his body and had to focus a little more.

With his long and slender yet sturdy frame, smooth complexion, rounded dazzling honey-colored eyes and sharp features Mamoru was rather popular among the young girls of Konoha who had graced him with the _"flattering"_ name Bishie-kun. To put it simply; Mamoru wasn't all that slick or cool but he was a pretty boy and that was enough for Konoha's young female population. He knew it and wasn't at all ashamed of his _bishounen_ title nor ashamed of flaunting it. He took great care in his appearance, loving the attention the girls gave him and always looking for more. He wasn't cocky really; he was just an attention-whore. Mamoru went for a cool yet casual style and according to his little group of fan girls he succeeded in doing so.

He wore a pair of neat but loose black shorts that fell to his knees, bandages tied around the bottom of his right leg from his ankle up to his knee and of course sandals that always managed to remain clean. A baggy grey short sleeved shirt with a zipper was pulled over a rather tight sleeveless fishnet shirt that gave a peek to all the still developing (but still delicious to the under sixteen crowd) muscles of his upper body. His over shirt was always left unzipped just so the fan girls could have something to gawk at. Bandages were tied around his hands, reaching all the way from his knuckles up into the sleeves of his shirt to cover the entirety of his arms and little gold hoops dangled from each of his ears, a curved gold stick with spiked ends pierced his right eyebrow as well.

It was Kiba's doing, the young man having stupidly agreed to get his young students anything their hearts desired after successfully completing their first mission and being ever-the-fashionable bunch they had all wanted body piercings. He had nearly been torn apart by angry parents but Kiba had always been a man of his word and they had been sure to hold him to it. Sure it was reckless and even a bit mean but Kiba's well being didn't matter to his students, especially Mamoru. All the young pretty boy cared about was the approval of his fan girls and they had greatly approved.

But the boy's need to be taken notice of was understandable; being born smack dab in the middle of fifteen brothers and sisters had left Mamoru starved for attention in his childhood. Now that he was finally getting some recognition from someone, even if it was just a bunch of crazed pre-teen girls, he was more then willing and ready to accept the interest. So he gratefully basked in the glory of not being the coolest guy around but the favorite of most of his female peers none the less, it was quite an accomplishment after all. The girls of Konoha could be very harsh judges.

Still up in the sky somewhere Kiba paid Mamoru no mind. "Uh _hello_! Kiba-sensei?" Mamoru called to his mentor once again, going so far as to wave his hand in front of the older man's face but it was no use. Kiba just kept on staring ahead, lips curled into a sly little grin.

"Forget it Mamoru, you'll never be able to reach him." Sounded the low easy drawl of a shorter boy who stepped up to Kiba's free side. "His head is up in the clouds somewhere." The boy continued, leaning forward slightly to get a good look at Kiba's dreamy expression through the rectangular lenses of the black glasses that sat upon his pointed nose.

Bushou Kouki was not the strongest or the fastest rookie shinobi to ever step through the academy doors a graduate. In fact the young man was rather lacking in combat skills. But his eyes were keen, his ears were sharp and when it came to chakra control he was like a young Haruno Sakura. He moved slowly but his motions were fluid and his steps always so quiet which made him something of a genius when it came to sneak attacks and spying. His only problem was a lack of motivation that rivaled Shikamaru's; he didn't like to move unless he absolutely had to and complained on and on in an annoyingly dull drone whenever he was given an order though he'd always go through with it… eventually. Kiba always stated that all the boy needed was a swift kick in the rear.

Kouki was Mamoru's right-hand-man; the two were always together and had been close long before their academy days. But unlike Mamoru, Kouki didn't have herds of young girls with nothing better to do flocking behind him every time he took a stroll through the square or watching him with stars in their eyes while he trained. So he acted as a sort of wing-man for his friend, distracting the fan girls with his fantastic card tricks whenever Mamoru needed a break. They loved his card tricks but none ever swooned over him the way they did Mamoru.

No with a rounded face, chubby cheeks and huge dewy baby-blues Kouki had a face that made the girls want to pinch his cheeks rather then kiss his lips. He was average height for a thirteen year old boy but with that baby-face of his he didn't look a day over eight. His hair was jet black, short and spiked up messily, his hitai-ite tied around his forehead though rather then being centered it was pushed over to the left a bit. Unlike his close comrade who took great care in his appearance Kouki was more casual about his own, far too lazy to be anything more.

His black slacks were rather baggy, always dragging under the heels of his sandals but somehow always managed to stay on his hips. He never wore anything more then a simple t-shirt that looked to be hand sliced with a kunai three times across the chest, peeling away to reveal the black fishnet shirt beneath, the long sleeves of which slid out from beneath the sleeves of his t-shirt, sliding down his arms to cling to his skin all the way down to his knuckles, his thumbs stuck through an oversize loop in the mesh at the end of each sleeve. His left ear was pierced twice with two golden hoops, matching the little arch like hoop tipped with little balls that pierced between his nostrils.

That was Kouki's little prize from the night Kiba had treated his students and the young boy's mother had been especially keen on tearing her son's sensei's head off. She had tried multiple times to get the piercing out of Kouki's nose whether it be with bribes or brute force but had yet to succeed. Kouki was determined to make sure his piercing stayed right where it was, thinking it gave him a bit of an edge and took away from his little boy looks. Kouki would do anything to keep from looking like a little boy.

"Well this sucks." Mamoru pouted, slipping his hands into his pockets begrudgingly as he bitterly kicked up some dirt. "How's he supposed to treat us to lunch if he's off in mushy, mushy ga-ga-land?"

Kouki gave an irritated sigh. "All that hard work we did trying to help him get a date; should have known it'd go unrewarded."

"Quit whining you two." Was the firmly reassuring call of a young girl who rode up to Kouki's side straddling an indifferent Akamaru like a horse. "I've got an idea." The girl's thick lips spread into a sly smirk as in one swift motion she dismounted Akamaru, hip-checked Kouki who, none to happily, staggered to the side out of her way and swooped down with a low right kick that threw Kiba's legs out from under him and sent him hard to the ground with a holler and a thud.

"Nice one Mimi-chan!" Mamoru cheered but Kouki didn't look at all impressed as he came to stand beside his buddy, arms crossed disapprovingly over his chest.

"Show-off." He scoffed but the young girl paid no mind to either boy as she stood over her sensei with a satisfied grin, having successfully (and quite brutally) knocked him out of his daydream.

Nekozawa Mimi was perhaps the most spirited kunoichi to ever come out of the academy. She had it all; nerve, stamina and the drive to over-succeed in everything and anything she did, forever trying to prove she was just as good as the boys. She was a master at hand-to-hand combat and weaponry but sadly she lacked in every other field. She didn't have the patience for strategy, she was decent at chakra control but needed some work but getting Mimi to sit back and listen was a battle all it's own. The young girl was exceedingly independent, didn't like to be taught but instead liked to learn by trial and error… and error… and error. With a lack of patience and a need to succeed Mimi was running on a short fuse and possessed a nasty little temper that she was ready to unleash upon the world at a moments notice.

She was quite literally a little ball of fire; standing just less than five feet tall Mimi was not a very imposing figure. But of course her loud personality and even louder mouth made up for her lacking stature. Her appearance didn't really help because, much like Kouki, Mimi had very child-like features. Her face was soft, her nose small, her lips pouting and she possessed these large vibrant green eyes accentuated by long dark lashes. Her eyes were perhaps her most striking feature as they were cat-like in shape and design with large irises and slanted pupils, allowing her to see clearly no matter how dim or even nonexistent the lighting which was quite useful in the shinobi world. Their piercing green color was made even more exquisite by the deep red color of her extremely long hair that was tied in two pigtails at the base of her neck, each braided and falling all the way down to her rear. Long bangs covered her wide forehead, parting slightly in the middle to show off the symbol carved into her hitai-ite, and encircled her face, the sides falling to her curved chin.

Unlike most of the young girls around Konoha Mimi was not part of the Mamoru fan club, in fact she couldn't stand the much taller boy though he seemed quite fond of her. She thought he was a clumsy idiot and told him so frequently as he tried to _"put the moves on her" _but despite Mimi's discontent for Mamoru the two were always together, though that wasn't completely uncommon when it came to team members. The young girl had a much rockier relationship with Kouki; the two were always at each other's throats and with both of them frequenting around Mamoru there were quite a lot of bitter battles between them always brutally verbal and sometimes even ruthlessly physical.

Mimi's style was… all her own. She wore very short black shorts that covered just over the curve of her rear and rested low on her hips, bandages wrapped all around her thighs right down to her knees and pulled over her shorts was a long black skirt that reached her knees and was slit on either side all the way up to her hips to give her legs free movement. Her top was a deep indigo and looked like what was once a sweater but had been massacred at the hand of Mimi. It was baggy, looking a few sizes too big and the neck was frayed, a telltale sign that it had been cut open so that it would hang loosely off her shoulders the way it did. The neck was now very open and would have been very revealing if not for the wide-strapped black tank-top that covered what would have been exposed of her chest which was fairly large for her age (which she suspected was the reason Mamoru paid so much attention to her). Shown beneath the tank top was a fishnet shirt, the sleeves of which were shown clinging to her arms down to elbows because the sleeves of the sweater had been cut up as well into nothing but thin strips that barely held the top up. Black fingerless gloves encompassed her hands, leaving her fingers free to show off the short indigo painted nails that she filed into dangerous points.

A single silver hoop pierced her right ear, contrasting the many that ran all along the shell of her left and matching the one that pierced the right side of her nose. None were Kiba's doing; the one he had gotten young Mimi was a tiny silver ball that stuck out on the left corner of her lower lip. Mimi's parents were the only ones who hadn't given Kiba grief, mostly because they were dead. Mimi lived with her older sister who had praised the piercing, deeming it _"rad"_ and even going out to get herself one. None of her teammates had ever met Mimi's sister, not even Kiba; the woman was always very busy trying to support herself and Mimi.

"Hello Mimi." Kiba grunted softly, staring up at the young girl leaning over him proudly with her hands on her hips as he lay sprawled out on the ground on his back.

"Yo Sensei." Her sly grin grew wider. "How'd it go?" She pressed, standing straight as Kiba sat up, patting a worried Akamaru's head who had come over to nuzzle and lick his cheek.

"I'm fine Akamaru." He reassured the large white dog as he dragged himself to his feet.

"Details Kiba-sensei!" Mamoru demanded eagerly as he came to stand beside Mimi, reaching up to drape his arm across the much smaller girl's shoulders as he leaned casually and comfortably against her. "We want details!" Mimi scoffed and shoved Mamoru harshly away from her. The clumsy boy stumbled, nearly falling but he was undeterred and merely kept right on smiling.

"We want the lunch we were promised for assisting you in your little sham." Mimi corrected.

"What do you care about lunch?" Kouki inquired, peering over at Mimi from Kiba's side. "Aren't you on a diet like all the other stupid girls in this village?"

Mimi snorted. "No! Why would I be? To catch the eye of one of you stupid boys? No thank you!" Mimi offered haughtily, flicking one of her long braids over her shoulder with one hand while the other fell to her hip as it jutted out. "I want a boy that likes me for me, not because I starve myself for him." She gave a firm nod and Kouki gave a sly smirk.

"That's a fat girl's mentality."

"I am not fat!" Mimi practically shrieked at the boy, glaring harshly at him. And she wasn't, not really, though admittedly she was a bit meatier then most of the girls her age which only contributed to those finely developing curves of hers. But Mimi was very sensitive about her weight and Kouki knew that.

Kouki's sly smirk grew to a mocking grin. "Not yet."

"Bastard!" She shouted, fury burning in her strange green eyes as she made a lunge at the boy.

Her murderous intent was clear but her attempt was thwarted as in a flash Mamoru's long arms were around her waist and had lifted Mimi, who was downright tiny in comparison to him, right off her feet and hugged her into his chest snuggly. He had her trapped in his embrace but that didn't stop Mimi from kicking her short but strong legs and flailing her arms at Kouki who, now that he knew he was safe, was mocking her with taunting facial expressions.

"Calm down Mimi-chan, you're not fat at all!" Mamoru offered in a tone that was both soothing and worried. He knew he had to calm her down quickly or Kouki was a dead man and it seemed he was successful because Mimi calmed significantly, stopping her furious whirlwind of limbs so that she simply stood in Mamoru's arms and leaned comfortably against his chest which was curved with his back to bring his chin to the top of her head. "But even if you were it wouldn't bother me, I like a girl with some meat on her bones. So eat all you want!"

The young boy grinned, unable to see the hot shade of red that had taken over Mimi's pale cheeks but he knew it was there. Her anger was gone, replaced with embarrassment and then irritation so quickly the three emotions seemed to blend before Mimi sent a pointed elbow back right into Mamoru's stomach. He grunted, his hold weakening so that Mimi could wrench away from him.

"Save the lines for your groupies Mamoru." Mimi shot at him, turning her head away and bowing it slightly, hiding the flush of her cheeks that remained from the young boy with her long bangs.

Ever the soldier of love Mamoru had only smiled at the spirited red-headed kunoichi, the grin looking pained as one hand gripped his stomach in the place Mimi had struck him. Kouki snorted at the two, rolling his eyes with a huff to look at Kiba as if to silently say _"Don't those two idiots know it's obvious they like each other?"_ Kiba could only gaze at his two eccentric students with an amused little smile.

"So how _did_ it go Kiba-sensei?" Kouki inquired with only mild interest. In all honesty he didn't care but when it was a choice between listening to Kiba drabble on and on about his current love-interest and how she was the _"one for him"_ or watching Mamoru throw himself at Mimi and her pretending she didn't like it he'd much rather listen to Kiba.

That goofy daydreaming smile returned to Kiba's face. "We have a date."

That caught Mamoru's attention and was a welcomed distraction for Mimi.

"_Whoa, _go_ Sensei_!" Mamoru gave two thumbs up and a large congratulatory grin and even Mimi offered a proud little smirk. "So when's the big night?"

"Tonight." Kiba beamed but Mimi's expression fell.

"Sensei, you were supposed to come to dinner at my house tonight." Mimi frowned at her mentor, quite annoyed with how unfazed he was by the reminder as he patted Akamaru's head and stared off with that stupid expression. "My sister was looking forward to finally meeting you."

"Oh yeah." Kiba offered nonchalantly to further irritate Mimi who was now glaring at him, stabbing him with those beautiful cat-like eyes. "Sorry Mimi, I completely forgot. We can reschedule can't we?"

Mimi looked away from his hopeful smile with a roll of her eyes. "I guess." She grumbled and Kiba nodded.

"Great!" He exclaimed before reaching into one of the pockets of his navy pants to retrieve his wallet. "I gotta head off now; I've got some stuff to plan for my date." He grinned, rummaging through his wallet to retrieve some money which he promptly handed to Kouki. "There's enough there to pay for the lunch I promised you and then some." Each set of his students' eyes popped open wide, astonished at Kiba's generosity and the young man simpered. "You've earned it."

"_Awesome!_" Mamoru hollered. "We just got paid for stabbing the teacher; that's like every kids dream." He laughed and Mimi gave a little snicker.

"So I guess this ends the relationship with our kunai and your back huh Kiba-sensei?" Kouki input thoughtfully as he slid the money into his pocket. "Pity, I was just starting to enjoy the blind stupidity of it all."

Kiba smirked, offering a hard ruffle to the top of the young boy's head, the action not sitting too well with Kouki who grimaced and pulled away.

"Sorry Kouki but I've got my dream girl so there's no more need for that." An affectionate expression overtook Kiba's face. "I'll see you guys later; let's go Akamaru." The large dog stood attentive as Kiba mounted him and then with an excited "Wahoo!" they were off as Akamaru bounded down the road.

"Stupid jerk." Mimi scoffed with a roll of her eyes.

"What are you all bent out of shape about?" Kouki asked with a slight raise of his brows. "You want him to meet your sister _that_ badly?" Mimi ignored him, simply turned and headed off.

"C'mon you two, don't start." Mamoru sighed before grinning as he hurried to Mimi's side. "Cheer up Mimi-chan; this is our first date ya know."

The redhead snapped her head to the side to fix her fiery gaze up at Mamoru who shrunk a bit under it. "This is _not_ a date."

"Aw c'mon Mimi-chan!" Mamoru whined at her and Mimi rolled her eyes. "Why won't you go out with me? You know you'd have fun."

"I'd rather get my teeth drilled."

"Liar." Mamoru smirked.

"I am not a liar." Mimi frowned, glaring at the taller boy once again.

"Are too."

"Am not!"

"Yes you are."

"No I _am not_!" By then she was practically howling at the boy.

"Oh yes you _are so_." Mamoru's tone was still calm and playful.

"Am not, am not, _am not!_"

"Are too, are too, _are too_."

"I'm still here you know." Kouki sighed, trailing a few steps behind the two with his hands casually shoved into his pockets and his feet dragging. "Can't you save the couples quarrel for later?"

Mimi's head snapped around to shoot daggers at Kouki with those strange green eyes of hers "_We are not a couple_!" She shrieked at the other boy who only gave a disinterested shrug.

"Sure we are!" Mamoru laughed and there was murder in her eyes when Mimi looked back to him.

"I will _never_ date you Mamoru, _**NEVER**_!" She yelled crossing her arms stubbornly over her chest and directing her gaze forward.

"Well couldn't you just consider it?" He implored in a softer, more serious tone that gave Mimi pause.

She didn't reply, nor did she look at him, she just kept walking with her eyes set straight. But there was a thoughtful look about her face, one that gave Mamoru hope and even managed to peak Kouki's interest. The other boy quickened his pace a bit, leaning forward just slight at Mimi's side to observe her. _'Is she finally gonna give in?'_ Kouki questioned inwardly.

"_Bishie-kuuun_!" The excited squeal of a young girl sounded from behind and Mimi's face instantly hardened. _'Guess not.'_ Kouki smirked.

Mamoru turned just in time to catch a pretty blonde girl he knew as Hazuki just as she threw herself at him. He staggered back, falling right onto his butt gracelessly with Hazuki in his lap but the young girl didn't seem to mind.

"Hi Hazuki-chan." He smiled politely as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Bishie-kun, you promised we'd go out on a date today." Hazuki pouted, her magenta eyes shining. "You didn't forget about me did you?"

Mamoru chuckled awkwardly. "'Course not!" It was a blatant lie but the girl was satisfied when Mamoru flashed her that charming smile that exposed his perfect pearly whites. "Mimi-chan…" He looked over to find Mimi hurrying down the road, dragging Kouki along by his wrist. "Mimi-chan, wait!"

"We'll meet you there, gotta attend to your fans right Mamoru?" She called back bitterly as she stalked around a corner, leaving Mamoru helpless against the horrifying obsession of a young teenage girl with a crush.

Kouki was none too happy with the way Mimi pulled him along but he knew better then to say so. He could practically feel the scorch of the young girl's seething anger and there was nothing scarier then an enraged Mimi ready to take out her frustration on the first person that set her off. So he just stayed quiet, tripping over his feet as he jogged to keep up with her.

Kiba-sensei, Mimi, Mamoru… _'Love turns people into such fools.'_ He thought begrudgingly. _'Maybe I should save my dignity and become a monk.'_

_----------------------------------------------------_

"Don't move!"

"Is this really necessary Ino?"

The blonde sighed with irritation as Tenten giggled from the other side of Sakura. "Quit complaining Forehead." She demanded firmly as she continued to circle Sakura along with Tenten, both girls giving the rosette-haired kunoichi the once over; they examined her, they picked at her, doing their best to perfect her. "This is your first real date in heaven knows how long and I'm not about to let you screw up your chances of finally bagging yourself a man by looking like the overworked slob you are."

Sakura fumed, glaring at Ino spitefully and grinding her teeth. In her own way Ino was just trying to help and Sakura knew that, but sometimes the Yamanaka female was just too much. _**'Slap her!'**_ Inner Sakura raged and at that moment Sakura wasn't completely against the idea. It was Tenten's light comforting touch upon her shoulder that worked to calm Sakura, if only just enough so that she didn't pounce on Ino and rip out all that pretty blonde hair she was so proud of.

"You look beautiful Sakura-chan." Sakura smiled gratefully at the brunette and Ino puckered her lips as if in though, stopping right in front of Sakura to once again look her over with those keen blue eyes.

"Yep, it's official." Ino grinned widely. "I'm a miracle worker; bow to me oh ye who are unworthy!" Tenten and Sakura just rolled their eyes.

Still as she examined herself in the full-length mirror beside the closet in Ino's room Sakura had to admit her childhood rival/friend/thorn in her side had done quite the job on her. Sakura was thankful she had let Ino talk her into letting her _"doll her up"_ for her date with Kiba.

The red party dress Ino had let her borrow was not only beautiful but Sakura was pleasantly surprised to find that it did offer her a modest boost of sex appeal just like Ino had claimed it would. The neckline was of a sweetheart design and though Sakura hadn't had the chest to properly fill it Tenten had solved that little crisis with two senbon and the kind of traceless pinning that would make any seamstress proud. So it was snug as it was meant to be; forming over and cupping Sakura's modest bosom in a way that greatly complimented and defined them. The waist was fitted, perfectly accentuating the trim dipping cut of her torso that was made even more apparent by the way the dresses skirt hugged Sakura's hips where it was admittedly a bit more binding then it should have been. The young kunoichi was not at all pleased to find that her hips and backside were… _"fuller"_ then Ino's but that aside she adored the way the dress complimented her figure.

The way the skirt cut off just at the edge of her lower thighs to show off her long finely sculpted limbs and how the sheer red long bell sleeves hung from her shoulders was what really gave the dress that edge of sensuality. Not to mention the strappy black spiked heels, which Sakura could barely walk in, that adorned her feet and the way her hair fell in fashionably messy spiral curls around her face, leaving her long bangs to hang mysteriously in her piercing jade eyes.

"You _are_ good Ino." Sakura had to hand it to the blonde despite the knowledge that that excessive little ego of hers would swell under the praise.

Sure enough it did. "Like I said, bow." Ino grinned as she pointed demandingly at the floor. Sakura saw the gesture in the mirror but she ignored it. Tenten on the other hand was getting quite the kick out of it and had her arms up in the air as she leaned over repeatedly to bow in Ino's direction.

"Oh great fashionista goddess!" Tenten exclaimed as Ino stood with all the dignified regal of a royal. "We are not worthy!" Tenten laughed.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Would you two cut it out?" She turned to her roommates, both of whom were giggling as they directed their stares at Sakura. "I'm nervous as hell and you're not helping." She sighed and Tenten frowned sympathetically.

"Don't worry about it Sakura." She reached out to offer a comforting grip to Sakura's shoulder. "You'll do great."

Ino scoffed. "Of course you will!" She declared as she snatched up Sakura's little black purse that would hang from its shoulder strap at her hip. "You look smoking hot so that should be enough to distract Kiba's attention away from anything stupid you might do." She went on and Sakura glared.

She knew this was the blonde's way of cheering her on but Sakura would never understand how Ino could think she was being helpful with her snippy little comments. Still, they did give the young kunoichi a burning desire to prove her friend wrong, so maybe they were helpful. Unappreciated, but helpful.

"Thank you oh great one." Sakura snorted causing Tenten to giggle and Ino to grin.

"Don't mention it." She moved around Sakura, firmly planting her hands on the other girls shoulder to begin forcibly pushing her toward the door. "Now go drop some jaws and snare your man!" Ino laughed and Tenten cheered as she opened the door and stood aside but Sakura could only gulp.

"Yeah…" She offered but none to enthusiastically. Ino shoved her out the door and Tenten slammed it behind her.

"You really think she'll be okay?" Tenten inquired but before Ino could even take a breath to answer Sakura came charging through the door, nearly killing Tenten with it.

"I can't do it!" She hollered on the verge of tears, falling against a wide-eyed and unhinged jawed Ino. "This dress is too tight and my ass looks _huge_ in it! I can barely walk in these damn heels and when I manage to move I waddle like a duck!" She clung harshly to Ino who couldn't help but leer at the thought of Sakura waddling like a duck. "Not to mention I look like some painted up hussy, this isn't me!" Ino frowned at that, it was her dress that Sakura was wearing after all. "I can't do it, I can't do it!" She sobbed as she buried her face in Ino's chest.

The blonde sighed and cast a look toward Tenten who had been just an astonished spectator throughout the whole dramatic occurrence. Their eyes met and there was a moment of instruction on Ino's part, confusion on Tenten's and then finally understanding between both girls all in a matter of seconds.

"Sakura…" Ino began as she pulled away just enough to reach down and cup Sakura's cheeks, guiding her head back gently so that Ino could gaze upon her face. "I'm your friend and you know I love you." She went on as she gingerly brushed away Sakura's tears, careful not to smudge the other girl's makeup. "But this is for your own good."

Sakura's brows crinkled, clearly not understanding and that was when it happened; due to her brief fit of hysteria Tenten's looming presence behind her had gone unnoticed so it was quite easy for the brunette to swiftly hook her arms under Sakura's trapping the other girl against her in a python grip and that was exactly what she did.

Sakura shrieked. "What are you doing?" She tried to look back at Tenten who held her steady. That was her big mistake because by the time she looked at Ino she had already prepared for Shintenshin no jutsu and Sakura promptly found that her mind was no longer her own. Ino's body slumped and fell forward against Sakura's, supported by it before Sakura's arms were released from Tenten's grasp and moved around it.

"Man, do you know how weird it is to carry yourself?" Ino question Tenten through Sakura's voice as she did just that and placed her body carefully on the couch.

'_**Grr! Ino get the fuck out of my head!' **_Inner Sakura fumed and Ino grimaced.

"That split personality of Sakura's is so obnoxious." She sighed. _**'I'll kill you!'**_

Tenten frowned, clearly not understanding but she didn't bother to ask.

"Take care of my body alright."

"Of course; don't do anything stupid in Sakura's." Tenten offered an accusing glare. "Just get her to the bar and release her."

Ino looked offended, but mockingly so. "Tenten, don't you trust me?" She sounded hurt but Tenten just rolled her eyes. "Well…" Ino sighed as she reached for Sakura's breasts, grasping the diminutive mounds to push them up so that a bit more cleavage was shown under the neckline of her dress. "Time to make Sakura look good." Tenten couldn't help but chuckle as Ino/Sakura headed out the door with all the style of a confident and sexy young woman.

'_**You're dead, DEAD!'**_ "Oh would you _shut up!_" Tenten heard the blonde yell before she closed the door with a deep sigh and a shake of her head.

_----------------------------------------------------_

Smoking cigarettes was a nasty little habit that Shiranui Genma had always frowned upon. It just wasn't attractive; smoking turned your teeth yellow, your lungs black and made your hair and fingers smell awful. No high-class babe wanted to mingle with let alone _mingle_ _on_ a man that smoked, at least none of the ones Genma had ever known. And of course rather then admit he might not have been the _"lady killer"_ he bragged about being he blamed his dwindling love life upon the ablaze tube that dangled from his lips.

…Even though his female problems had existed long before he had picked up the little habit.

He didn't want to smoke, but Genma had promised himself that never again would he go out drinking with that signature senbon of his clenched between his teeth. Not after that little incident where he had gotten so piss-face drunk that he'd past out face first on the bar and lodge the long needle in the back of his throat. Genma shivered at the recollection as well as due to the chilled night air that wrapped around his body.

It figured that his favorite bar and grille house would outlaw smoking within its walls, banishing him out to the cold whenever Genma needed his nicotine fix. Really it wasn't the nicotine, Genma just needed something to occupy his mouth; lollipops weren't nearly manly enough, chewing gum hurt his jaw and he wouldn't risk his chiseled physique shoving junk food in his mouth every time he was bored. So smoking, much as he disliked it, was his outlet.

It wasn't all bad really; he rather liked the way the menthol made the back of his throat tingle and though being forced out into the cold wasn't what Genma would call a good time, being able to check out all the fine female specimens Konoha had to offer as they hurried home after a long days work or headed from home out to a long nights partying was indeed. With his cigarette nearly finished Genma's eyes had been graced with the sight of quite a few lovely ladies that night, enough to satisfy him anyway… for the time being.

But it was as he tossed the filter to the ground and snuffed out its flame with the heel of his sandal that Genma spotted the tastiest little morsel he had seen all night approaching from down the road. One flash of pink hair and it wasn't hard to figure out whom it was, there was only one pink-haired female in Konoha, but Genma was still having trouble believing that the sexy little minx that was approaching him with that sensual little swagger he could practically taste on his tongue was Haruno Sakura.

Genma was in awe, unable to do anything but gape, hypnotized by the sway of those heavenly curved hips. He had never noticed before but Sakura was packing quite nicely below the waist on the sides and in the back and Genma greatly approved. When finally he managed to drag his eyes up her body to her face, of course taking time to admire her chest which despite being nothing special in size earned quite a few points for shape and pertness noting the presence of the nubs that tipped them pushing against the fabric of her dress, he found that Sakura was looking right at him. Those light green irises of hers were bearing right into him, dancing with a sort of knowing mischief and with those full red painted lips of hers tugged up into a coy smirk it was quite obvious that she knew exactly what was going on in his mind.

"Mm, Genma likey." The words left his lips in a low feral purr while the corners of his lips tucked up into a brazen little smirk. Sakura giggled and Genma knew she had read his lips and loved the extra confidence it seemed to add to her swagger.

"Evening Genma-san." A nod was offered in his direction as Sakura past him by and all the while Genma stared, his eyes once again having strayed to the alluring movement of those hips of hers.

"Hello Sakura, fun filled evening planned for tonight?" Genma inquired in brash manner that matched the look in his eyes.

"Mhm." She giggled without evening looking back at him. This caused Genma to frown a bit.

"Well why don't you come hang out with me instead?" Genma offered casually, not once budging from his spot, unceremoniously leaning on the side of the building next to its door. "I'm sure our time spent together would be…" He paused for dramatic affect and as if on cue Sakura's movements halted and her body curved to allow her to look back at him, question shining in her green eyes and amusement playing at her red lips. "_fun_." He finally finished.

To that Sakura actually gave a laugh, those luminescent eyes rolling as she turned with a flick of her short pink locks and a twitch of her wide hips.

"Sorry Genma, but I've got a date." She called back with a careless wave of her hand and continued on her way down the road.

Though her demeanor was cocky, bordering on conceded, Genma loved it. His mouth watered as he watched Sakura's curvy hips knock to sway that luscious little bottom at him so temptingly like only a truly confident woman could. He appreciated the sight, savored it like the true delicacy it was; he had had no idea Haruno Sakura had the stuff to drive a man wild, but with the sudden revelation he vowed he'd keep his eye on her.

"My, my Sakura, how you've grown." He chuckled as her figure disappeared around a corner, still grinning from ear to ear when he entered the bar. "Yo Kakashi, guess who I just saw."

"Genma…" Iruka began sternly, narrowing his eyes at the other man who joined him at his booth and sat across from him. "Show some re-"

"Forget it Iruka." Kakashi shrugged from Iruka's side, not once looking up from his trusty book which he held just under his masked nose. "Who did you see Genma?" Kakashi asked in a way that did nothing to hide how utterly uninterested he was, his one uncovered eye never even stopping its examination of the current page it rested on.

"I saw a total babe." Iruka snorted and Kakashi grunted, both having known fully well the other man would say something along those lines. "It was Haruno Sakura."

Iruka's jaw nearly hit the table but Kakashi gave no real reaction. The only indication that he had heard Genma's words was that his eye paused its back and forth decent of the pages of his book. But the reaction was brief and almost as soon as he had stopped Kakashi was once again casually reading.

"You're unbelievable Genma." Iruka scoffed as if disgusted with the other man who only shrugged and maintained that twisted smirk of his. "You really have no shame do you? Not only is Sakura far too young for you but you've known her since she was a genin; that's disgusting." Iruka went on with his lecture and it was Genma's turn to roll his eyes.

So wrapped up in their building conflict neither man took notice of the way Kakashi's hand clutched tighter at his book nor the way his being stiffened just a bit under the impact of Iruka's words.

"Jeez Iruka, you're like an overprotective mother." Genma chuckled, brushing off the heated daggers Iruka shot at him with his eyes. "She's not your student anymore."

"That's completely beside the point!"

"Yeah, yeah; _'It's wrong, she's too young Genma, too naïve and innocent and blah, blah, blah…'_" He mocked the other man with his imitation. "Well I'll have you know Iruka; the girl I just saw was neither innocent nor naïve."

To that Iruka arched his brow. "What do you mean?"

"I told you, she was a _total babe_!" Genma exclaimed, leaning back with a sigh at the memory. "She looked so tasty in that little red dress and man did she know how to work it. Hell if I'd had known she had those hips and that ass I'd have jumped at her sooner. I'm seriously jealous of the guy she was going to meet. Hopefully it goes bad so I can slide in there; it's easier when they're on the rebound."

"You're vial." Iruka sneered. "And are you sure it was Sakura you saw? That doesn't sound like her."

"Yeah I was pretty shocked myself." Genma admitted. "But how many pink haired kunoichi are roaming the village streets? It was definitely Sakura and all I can say… is Genma likey." He chuckled and Iruka rolled his eyes.

"Interesting…" Kakashi's mutters brought both Iruka and Genma's attention to the famous copy nin. "Very interesting…" He went on before his demeanor relaxed significantly, his being once more casual as his eye continued its roam over the page of his book.

"What was that?" Iruka inquired, but Kakashi just gave a wave of his free hand, dismissing the conversation.

"Well I've had my cigarette, my senbon is safely tucked away somewhere it won't pierce my throat and I'm now horny as hell so I gotta find something to distract myself with." Genma exclaimed, slamming his fists into the table of the booth. Iruka groaned, a peeved and sickened look playing upon his face at Genma's unabashed display of words. "Bring on the drinks!"

Genma rose from the booth and headed straight for the bar but Iruka didn't budge, his attention elsewhere. Kakashi's eye had once again ceased its movement over the page of his signature book but this time it stared at the piece of literature sternly, his gave spearing the book. He looked no different then he normally did, but having known the silver-haired man so long Genma could tell by that hard look in the depth of his dark eye that something was wrong.

But for the life of him he couldn't figure out what…

_----------------------------------------------------_

'_**You're making me look like a slut!'**_ Ino groaned as Sakura's inner self thundered on and on in her ear, thankful that she was almost to their desired destination. _**'I'm going to kill you. KILL YOU!'**_

"Oh _please_ just shut the hell up already!" Ino snapped, ignoring the frightened look her _"uncalled for" _outburst earned her from a couple she past by. "I'm doing you a favor, how about a little appreciation?"

'_**Oh I'll give you **_**appreciation **_**you no good, controlling, overbearing-'**_

"We're here." Ino's thankful words interrupted Inner Sakura's rant. "Good luck."

That was all she said and before Sakura knew what was happening her body was once again her own. It was like waking up from a dream in an unrecognizable place and it made Sakura's head swim so that she stumbled. With her finely tuned sense of balance it would be easy for Sakura to catch herself, or at least it would have if she hadn't been in spiked high heels. So instead of catching herself with the grace and dignity of a well-respected Konoha kunoichi Sakura instead stumbled and with a squeaky yelp went toppling off to the side.

She braced for the fall but thankfully she was saved as her head fell into a sturdy chest and strong arms wrapped around her middle to hold her up. The distinct sent of cinnamon filled her nostrils and Sakura knew who it was whose arms encircled her before she lifted her head to find kind brown eyes staring back into hers and full manly lips lingering just inches away from her own. It was a perfect moment, a well planned coincidence… fate.

"Kiba-san." She stated softly and the man grinned that charming grin of his that caved in those dimples on his cheeks and made his eyes gleam.

"Hello Sakura-chan."

'_Thank you fate.'_ The young man thought to himself, holding a bit tighter to Sakura's form as the sweet rosette-haired young woman continued to stare up at him as if mesmerized and utterly confused. _'She's so adorable.'_

"You ready to have some fun?" He questioned but Sakura could only manage to stare at him dumbly, still wrapped in his arms and leaning practically all of her weight into him. He was so handsome, so youthful and it made her stomach flutter when she looked into his eyes. But it also made her heart clench.

'_Why does it hurt so much?' _The thought was there but she pushed it away. She wouldn't ruin it; she wouldn't destroy her one chance at normalcy, at a decent and healthy relationship with a decent and healthy guy. She couldn't, she had to make it work, she _needed_ it to work.

So instead of letting the tears fall, instead of turning away and fleeing she nodded and his grin widened. His arm slipped down her back as he nudged her a bit to straighten her, wrapping his arm around her hips and pulling her into his side.

"Then let's go."

* * *

**Otachii:** Yay a new chapter! Sorry it took so long everybody; I moved recently and I needed some time to adjust and make the transition or whatever. But I finally got it finished! I know I move slow and I know the story itself is moving rather slowly as well... but please, be patient and bear with me. I promise it'll be worth it, or at least I hope it will. o.o

If you could, tell me what you think of Kiba's _"Little Bastards"_ so far. I'm curious as to whether or not people like the characters I came up with as much as I do. I hope you do and I hope you enjoy the chapter! The KakaSaku is coming people, I promise! Hell at least Kakashi finally showed up right?

And can I just say... Genma=Heart. I adore him, he's just such fun to play with. x3


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